PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Wednesday, 14th March, 2018
The Senate met at Halfpast Two o’clock p. m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENTS BY THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF
THE SENATE
INVITATION TO A MULTISTAKEHOLDER CONVERSATION
THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I wish
to advise the Senate that the Centre for Peace Initiatives in Africa and Zimbabwe Institute are inviting all Committee Chairpersons and the Chairperson of the Women’s Caucus to a multistakeholder conversation with the Minister of Finance and Economic Development. The objective of the dialogue is to enhance national consensus on essential factors conducive for promoting investment and economic development in Zimbabwe. The dialogue session will be held at Rainbow Towers on 22nd March, 2018, from 0830 hours to 1300 hours. All Chairpersons must attend.
SUBMISSION OF CDF RETURNS
THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE:
Following the announcement on the 7th of March 2018, on the requirement of Hon. Members to comply with Article 5.2.4 of the Accounting Officers’ Instructions which provides for submission of returns for CBF, Hon. Eng. Mudzuri and Hon. Matangira raised two point of orders in relation to the employment of an accounting officer to manage the fund and the scrapping of the requirement for the submission of job cards. The objective of the fund is to allocate monies equitably to constituencies for purposes of constituency development and poverty eradication. The Constitution does not provide for the employment of staff to manage the fund or the payment of allowances for committee members, hence the requirement in Article 9 (3) of the CDF Constitution as read together with Article 5.1 of the Accounting Officer’s Manual. In terms of these provisions the Constituency Development Fund
Committee shall consist of any other three members coopted by the Committee and must, within the Committee, establish a subcommittee on Finance and Procurement which consists of three members with one member having an administration or accounting background. The duties of the subcommittee are listed in Article 5.2 and Article 5.2.3 which states one of the duties as maintaining cash book and other relevant records. The Committee shall delegate the responsibility to one of members with an accounting or administration background.
Let me also remind you Hon. Members that the Member of Parliament who is the Chairperson is the accounting officer of the funds allocated for his constituency and must, for purposes of accountability, comply with the requirements of submission of returns as stipulated in the Accounting Officers’ Manual for tabling to the CSRO annually by the Clerk of Parliament.
The requirement for submission of job cards is a requirement of the CDF Constitution and must be complied with even for small jobs as referred by the Hon. Members. The purpose is for accounting for the allocated funds. The CDF Fund must also be audited by the AuditorGeneral at the end of each financial year. The job cards may be purchased from Printflow (former Government Printers) and charged to the fund.
Members who have not submitted the documents are advised to do so by close of business on the 31st of March 2018. This is to allow for all administrative processes to be completed before the end of the Eighth Parliament and for all Hon. Members to account for monies allocated for their constituencies before the dissolution of Parliament. No Member will be allowed to claim for fuel allowances for the purposes of submission of documents if they choose to submit during the period when Parliament is adjourned. The names of Members who have not submitted any documentation or projects or claimed their allocation will be submitted to Chief Whips or named after the cutoff date. Be advised accordingly.
MOTION
RATIFICATION OF THE MARRAKESH TREATY ON ACCESS TO
PUBLISHED WORKS FOR BLIND, VISUALLY IMPAIRED OR
PRINT DISABLED PERSONS
THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE
(HON. KAGONYE): Mr. President, I move the motion standing in my name:
THAT WHEREAS Section 327 (2) (a) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe provides that any Convention, Treaty or Agreement acceded to, concluded or executed by or under the authority of the President with one or more foreign states of governments or International
Organisations shall be subject to approval by Parliament;
WHEREAS the Republic of Zimbabwe is desirous of becoming party to the Marrakesh Treaty to facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons who are blind, visually impaired or otherwise print disabled;
WHEREAS the Marrakesh Treaty recognises that Governmental and Non – Governmental Organisations play an important role in providing persons with print disabilities with access to alternative format materials;
WHEREAS the Republic of Zimbabwe is desirous of ratifying the
Marrakesh Treaty;
WHEREAS the entry into force of the aforesaid Treaty shall be conditional upon its ratification by the Member States in accordance with their Constitutional Procedures;
NOW THEREFORE, in terms of Section 327 (2) (a) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, this House resolves that the aforesaid Treaty be and is hereby approved for ratification.
The Marrakech Treaty seeks to facilitate access to published works by visually impaired persons and persons with print disabilities. This was adopted in Morocco on 28th June 2013. Zimbabwe joined other member States of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and/or members of the Berne Union for the protection of literary and artistic works in concluding the treaty which allows for copyright exceptions to facilitate the creation of accessible versions of books and other copyrighted works for visually impaired persons. The treaty sets a norm for countries ratifying the treaty to have a domestic copyright exception covering these activities and allowing for the import and export of such materials.
The Marrakech Treaty seeks to facilitate access to published works by visually impaired persons and persons with print disabilities. This was adopted in Morocco on 28th June 2013. Zimbabwe joined other member States of the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) and/or members of the Berne Union for the protection of literary and artistic works in concluding the treaty, which allows for copyright exceptions to facilitate the creation of accessible versions of books and other copyrighted works for visually impaired persons. The treaty sets a norm for countries ratifying the treaty to have a domestic copyright exception covering these activities and allowing for the import and export of such materials.
In principle, the Marrakech Treaty falls under the purview of the rights of persons with disabilities and visual impairment. Currently, the Disabled Persons Act is undergoing rigorous reforms in the purview of the alignment of laws to the Constitution exercise and incorporating the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Increasing access is not primarily a legal question but requires cultural change of mainstreaming access for visually impaired persons by all actors in the information chain. Once domesticated, it will enhance the right to education, information and participation among others by visually impaired persons at every level who are otherwise finding it difficult to advance to postsecondary education due to limited learning materials and appropriate technology to access works.
The treaty widens the scope of limitations and exceptions to copyright at the international level. It follows that the Zimbabwe copyright system now falls short of the international regime in so far as access to published works by the visually impaired persons and those with print disabilities is concerned. Zimbabwe therefore needs to revise and amend the copyright legislation, particularly the provisions on limitations and exceptions and align it with the Marrakech Treaty. An enabling legal framework would empower, rather than threaten the ability of rights holders to serve the market of visually impaired persons. It would improve cooperation and public private partnership, and would also support markets instead of only assisting such access. Thank you.
HON. SEN. MASHAVAKURE: Thank you Mr. President. I
would like to thank the Minister of Labour and Social Welfare for the move that she has taken together with the Ministry to have this Marrakesh Treaty ratified because it is going to benefit a large chunk of the disability constituents which has been experiencing a lot of difficulties from primary to tertiary education in terms of accessing published works including prescribed text for the various levels of education. I think now this is going to solve the whole problem and it will also, I believe encourage local publishers to make sure that whenever a new book comes into play or when an old book is reprinted, they can also come up with, for instance, an electronic version of that same published work which is easily accessible to persons with visual impairment and those who are not able to read, who are print disabled.
An eversion is good in the sense that it will not go to the reader for free because it will be sold just like the print version. I think this is a very good move, but my worry is that in the past, we have ratified the United Nations Convention here and five years down the line, it still has not been domesticated. My query to the Minister would be, are we getting into the same instant, into the same territory whereby we ratify it today and then again we have to wait for a date and a day on which the Marrakesh Treaty will be domesticated. Thank you Mr. President.
HON. SEN. SHIRI: Thank you Mr. President. I would like also to add my voice and thank the Hon. Minister for this positive move as we move to promote inclusive education and also just to remind the Hon. Minister that the domestication of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities I think needs more attention as we are in the aligning of the laws. Also, we are very grateful Hon. Minister, that at last we received the letters that the belated IDD is going to be there on 26th March and His Excellency will be there as our guest of honour. Thank you.
HON. SEN. TIMVEOS: Thank you Mr. President. I just want to also add my voice to this treaty. I want to thank the Hon. Minister for bringing this treaty to the Senate. This treaty is very important and its ratification is really critical.
Hon. Minister, like you heard Hon. Sen. Mashavakure talking about domestication, most of the times we sign all these treaties and we ratify, but we never domesticate. I think this is a very important treaty whereby you really have to rush and domesticate it because we have been going around with HIV and Aids Thematic Committee around the country and a lot of our fellow citizens that are visually impaired are really crying for braille.
They are crying to say, we cannot even read. The condoms that you give us, we cannot read. A lot of things that could otherwise happen, they cannot and also when they go to hospital, some of the things they are meant to learn, they cannot read them because braille is just not available. So, all sectors, every Ministry actually, should have this other. So, I am quite happy with this treaty that you have got and its ratification. I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE
(HON. KAGONYE): Thank you Mr. President and thank you Hon. Senators for your contributions. From what I heard, they are all supporting and the main concern is the domestication of the treaty. All I can do right now is to confirm and also to make a pledge that we are going to do what we can as soon as possible so that the treaty is also domesticated. Thank you.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
RATIFICATION OF THE SADC PROTOCOL ON
EMPLOYMENT AND LABOUR
THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE
(HON. KAGONYE): I move the motion standing in my name:
THAT WHEREAS Section 327 (2) (a) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe provides that any convention, treaty or agreement acceded to, concluded or executed by or under the authority of the President with one or more foreign states of governments or International Organisations shall be subject to approval by Parliament;
WHEREAS Zimbabwe is committed to promote and protect the social and economic rights of its people and guarantee International
Organisations and regional best practices in the labour market;
AND WHEREAS Zimbabwe approved of the SADC policies on
Child Labour, Social Security, Use of Chemicals, HIV and HIV and Decent work it remains desirous to realize the aspirations of regional cooperation and integration in the employment and Labour sector;
AND WHEREAS, His Excellency, the President of the republic of
Zimbabwe, Cde. Robert Gabriel Mugabe on the 18th of August 2014 at
Victoria Falls signed SADC Protocol and Employment and Labour;
NOW THEREFORE, in terms of Section 327 (2) (a) of the
Constitution of Zimbabwe, this House resolves that the aforesaid Ratification of the SADC Protocol on Employment and Labour be and is hereby approved for acceptance.
Thank you Mr. President. I would like to move for the approval of acceptance for the ratification of the SADC Protocol on employment and labour.
Employment and labour are vital components of economic development. A vibrant labour market attracts foreign direct investment and improves living standards for people throughout the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region.
The former Head of State and Government, Cde Robert Gabriel
Mugabe on the 18th of August, 2014 in Victoria Falls joined with other
Heads of States to sign the SADC Protocol on Employment and Labour. They were driven by the commitment to promote and to protect the economic and social rights of the people of Africa and guarantee special protection to the marginalised sections of the societies and also giving effect to the Internationals Labour Organisarion core conventions. These core conventions include the Declaration on Fundamental
Principles and Rights at work of 1998, the ILO Employment Policy
Conventions, the Social Security (minimum standards) Convention of 1952 and other core international instruments concerning labour and social security.
At present, employment and labour productivity in SADC member
States remains low, with a considerable number of people currently engaged in subsistence rather than formal employment. Furthermore, structural changes from the implementation of the SADC free trade area have affected businesses that were protected by tariffs and lack of competition, which can negatively affect local employment. In addition, the introduction of efficient technologies can reduce the demand for employment in productive sectors such as oil, gas and mining, thereby increasing the skill requirements necessary for those jobs that remain available. Extractive industries are also capitalintensive, which creates a barrier to entry for potential local business owners. In response to these issues, the labour force has turned to informal systems of employment, which are characterised by lower incomes, insecurity and underemployment.
Following from the assertion that inadequate labour standards and regulations are responsible for low employment rates, SADC began implementing standards developed by the International Labour Organisation in 1997. The International Labour Organisation is also providing half of the funding for a longterm programme intended to increase employment in the region. The programme is already yielding positive results: from 2010 to 2011; 200 000 jobs were created in South
Africa alone, 60% of which were for women.
In terms of Section 327 (2) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, international treaties require approval by Parliament tor domestication. With respect to the present protocol on employment and labour, the primary objective of SADC is to increase opportunities for employment in the region. To meet this objective, labour productivity needs to improve, member states will enjoin in terms of Article 21 to cooperate in all areas necessary to foster regional development and integration on the basis of balance, equity and mutual benefit. It is agreed that the protocol through employment and labour sector areas of cooperation will guide employment creation, poverty eradication facilation of labour migration and harmonisation of labour and social security legislation.
Thank you.
HON. SEN. B. SIBANDA: I thank the Minister for coming to
this House to get ratification for this treaty and I think that it is the right move. When the Minister started presenting her paper, she stated that employment and labour are critical for a vibrant economy. I would like the Government related companies and other employers to be aware of that statement because we cannot have the labour we need and we cannot have the vibrancy that we need for the economy when people employed in Government related companies are going on for years without payment. So, we ratify this with the full understanding that you will gear up as Minister of Labour and Social Welfare and ensure that people get a fair return for their labour. I thank you Mr. President.
HON. SEN. CHIMHINI: Thank you Mr. President and thank you Minister for bringing the motion for ratification. I hope that as we accept the motion in this House, you are also looking at the economic zones which we are now talking about in the country because it appears that it is not very clear whether those people are properly covered in terms of the works. Normally, we get very conflicting statements that the employees may not be covered under the labour laws. At one time we understand that the former President indicated that that was an anomaly but I am not too sure practically on the ground whether what we are rarifying here or accepting as Parliament would then accommodate those employees in those economic zones.
Secondly, I want to find out whether our ratification is also looking at the tripartite arrangement because these are critical if we have to have a smooth running in this country once we talk about employment, employers and so on. We want to find out whether it will also cover the public servants because they are workers/employees and currently we have the junior doctors on strike and one cannot talk about a vibrant society when we have doctors who go on strike because the labour laws in this country may not categorically cover public servants, yet they are also employees like any other person. So I would wish the Minister to also look at those aspects so that it is not just a ratification and at the end we still continue having people who complain that they are workers but they are not properly catered for. I thank you Mr. President.
HON. SEN. SHOKO: Thank you Mr. President. I want to thank the Minister for bringing this SADC Protocol on Employment and Labour to this House. This is a very important protocol because it is going to allow our people to have a choice of jobs because then it means to say that SADC is now open to our people. As you know our people have got skills and as you know, we have a lot of colleges that are producing graduates every year and our unemployment is very high. Therefore, I think that will help our people to get employment in SADC countries and they would not be going there illegally. They will be going there with the necessary documentations. This will help this country in this way Mr. President. We will be able to have pensions being remitted to this country from SADC countries.
Presently, that is not possible because we had not signed this protocol. We will also be able to be getting remittances if we want, where we can make arrangements with SADC Governments so that those who were born around the 1960s or 1970s, you know something called Wenera. In Wenera the Government would get a particular percentage for their taxes. So, having signed this protocol, and also ratifying it in Parliament, it would help Government’s economic drive, and certainly you would get that economic drive. However, the problem that we have is that it is ratified in Parliament, and then it is not put in an Act. It becomes a bit difficult for the stakeholders to then be able to move forward using that particular protocol, because a protocol can be signed but if it is not enabled by a local Act, it becomes a bit of a problem. That is so because when you use it, you have to use the Constitution to say there is a protocol that you signed, it is not covered by an Act, therefore, I am using the Constitution. So, I am kindly requesting that the Hon. Minister goes back and to have this brought into the Acts. I know that this may not be covered by the Labour Act because this is a regional protocol and there must be an Act that covers this one, so that when the workers want to emigrate or make applications and recruitment – they understand how they are recruiting.
Presently you will find that our workers are being exploited
because we do not have these protocols that are signed with SADC. Our workers are being harassed all the time when they go to South Africa or Botswana. Some of our workers when they get to Botswana and secure work for a month, at the end of the month the employer calls the police and they are deported. With this protocol, we are no longer going to have that because all the employees are going to have the requisite permits to go, live and work in Botswana and return to their country of origin. So Hon. Minister, I urge you to quickly look into this issue. We are happy that you brought it here for ratification and we congratulate you for doing that. I thank you.
HON. SEN. KHUMALO: I would also like to applaud the Hon. Minister for bringing this protocol to the Senate so that we can discuss about it and the fact that we are now going to ask for the alignment so that we can easily implement what is written in this document. What is good about it is the fact that while we are very happy that it is covering the SADC region, we now have to look at the children and women. Once this protocol is ratified, in future, the women and children will be protected from abuse because we find that women are really abused due to poor labour practices and that is why we find women on the streets.
Now that the SADC countries have agreed that they want to have a system that covers them all and we have heard that there will be agreements that people can go and work. I visited a country that I am not going to name. We were really embarrassed that we had our own women in that country who were saying, ‘now we want to go back home but it is difficult for us to do so because when we came here, were promised work’. There was no system of making the workers to work in that country, they were in real trouble. We appreciate that this protocol on labour will allow women to work freely and have their remittances sent to their relatives in Zimbabwe as they will be protected. I think the labour laws will also reduce the number of night workers as you can see, because there is no work. We find night workers working there because that is making it unsafe to work for an individual. They do not look after them, they then prefer to stand along the streets and work at night.
I hope that with this SADC labour law, that we as a country will also appreciate and use it and that it is going to make our Zimbabwean women work with protection so that they are not afraid to work or end up on the streets working at night. In that manner and appreciation, I would like to thank the Hon. Minister. I thank you.
*THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE (HON. SEN. CHIEF CHARUMBIRA): Who are the night workers? – [Laughter.] –
HON. SEN. MUMVURI: Thank you Mr. President, allow me to thank the Hon. Minister for coming to this House and complete this range of protocols. They have been sitting for quite some time, since last year and at one time there was no Minister to respond to that. I thank her for bringing this.
Since it is the SADC protocol on employment and labour, it is going to be a regional document or issue that affects labour in all our regional countries. My questions are: is this protocol going to recognise remuneration of certain fields like engineers and electricians? Is it going to stipulate average remuneration within the region or each country is going to peg its own salaries?
Secondly, does this protocol cover our workers who are in the sporting fields like soccer players who migrate to South Africa, Botswana and those who come here? Are their conditions of service going to be regulated? I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE (HON. KAGONYE): Thank you Mr. President. I
would like to thank Hon. Senators for their contributions. I would like to highlight that the SADC protocol seeks to realise the aspirations of regional cooperation and integration on employment and labour. It seeks to bring best practices within the SADC countries when it comes to issues of labour and employment.
In terms of Hon. Sen. Chimhini’s contribution about special economic zones, the TNF and Public Service – it is not covered under this protocol. We have a separate TNF Bill that has since passed Cabinet Committee on Legislation and awaits being presented in Cabinet. So it will be coming to Parliament soon. Also the special economic zones regulations are also incorporated in the Labour Act and it will be coming. The public service is part of labour so the ILO and its regulations apply to all forms of labour.
To Hon. Sen. Sibanda, the return for labour, I take note of that one but it is also not covered under this protocol.
Hon. Sen. Shoko, those were quite supportive comments to what we are talking about and the domestication of the protocol is what we are concerned about. I take note.
The other contributions, I think, maybe it about understanding how the protocol operates, but the protocol just seeks to regularise what happens within SADC countries. So in terms of stipulating the amounts of salaries that are paid for specific skills, well it depends with the countries, otherwise I noted your contributions and would like to thank you.
Motion put and agreed to.
THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I want
to make a comment Minister; I congratulate you that your motion has gone through. I also want to compliment you for speaking fluent English.
MOTION
RATIFICATION OF THE ILO PROTOCOL TO THE FORCED
LABOUR CONVENTION P029
THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE
(HON. KAGONYE): Thank you Mr. President for the compliment.
Mr. President, I move the motion standing in my name;
THAT WHEREAS, Section 327 (2) (a) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe provides that any Convention, Treaty or Agreement acceded to, concluded or executed by or under the authority of the President with one or more foreign states or governments or International Organisations shall be subject to approval by Parliament;
WHEREAS Zimbabwe is a member State of the International
Labour Organisation and seeks to eradicate forced labour in all its forms;
AND WHEREAS Cabinet approved of the Ratification of the ILO
Protocol to the Forced Labour Convention P029 on the 1st of June, 2017:
NOW, THEREFORE, in terms of Section 327 (2) (a) of the
Constitution of Zimbabwe, this House resolves that the aforesaid
Protocol be, and is hereby, approved for acceptance.
Forced labour is defined as, “all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty and for which the said person has not offered themselves voluntarily”. The indicators of forced labour are, abuse of vulnerability, deception, restriction of movement, isolation, physical and sexual violence, intimidation and threats, retention of identity documents, withholding of wages, debt bondage, abusive working and living conditions and excessive overtime. The prohibition of forced or compulsory labour forms part of the body of fundamental rights, and affords dignity of women, men and children.
Forced labour contributes to the perpetuation of poverty and stands in the way of the achievement of decent work for all. Protocol number 29 of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention recognises that the context and forms of forced or compulsory labour have changed and now takes on board trafficking in persons for the purposes of forced or compulsory labour. In most cases, it involves sexual exploitation which has become the subject of growing international concern and requires urgent action for its effective elimination. There is indeed an increased number of workers who are in forced or compulsory labour in the private economy, and certain sectors of the economy are particularly vulnerable, certain groups of workers have a higher risk of becoming victims of forced or compulsory labour, especially migrants.
Anyone can become a victim of forced labour. However, people who lack knowledge of the local language or laws have few livelihood options, these belong to a minority religious or ethnic group, have a disability or have other characteristics that set them apart from the majority population and are especially vulnerable to abuse and more often found in forced labour. In Zimbabwe, forced labour saw these indicators in situations where females were trafficked to places such as
Kuwait for various unspecified violations against their person.
Forced labourers, their family members and close associates may be subjected to actual physical or sexual violence. Violence can include forcing workers to take drugs or alcohol so as to have greater control over them. Violence can also be used to force a worker to undertake tasks that were not part of the initial agreement, such as to have sex with the employer or family member or, less extreme, to undertake obligatory domestic work in addition to their “normal” tasks. Physical abduction or kidnapping is an extreme form of violence which can be used to take a person captive and then force them to work. Violence is not acceptable as a disciplinary measure under any circumstances; it is a very strong indicator or forced labour.
The Constitution of Zimbabwe under Section 327 encouraged the
Ratification of International Conventions, Agreements and Instruments.
Out of 26 International Labour Organisations Conventions ratified by Zimbabwe, 25 are in force including the Forced Labour Protocol ratified on the 27th of August, 1998. The benefits of ratifying this Protocol will see the elimination of forced labour in all its forms through domestication. It will curb the discrimination against vulnerable groups of society including women, minority groups and persons with disabilities. International and regional member states to the protocol shall cooperate for the purposes of mitigating forced labour at their borders and in their jurisdictions.
HON. SEN. SHOKO: Thank you Mr. President and Hon. Minister. Let me congratulate the Minister for bringing this Protocol into this Senate. You can see that this Protocol was there in 1930 and from 1930 up to today, it had not been ratified by any governments that have been there in this country. The reason was very simple, it was because the governments that were there wanted to use cheap labour and therefore, could not ratify this. It is unfortunate that in 1998, we ratified it with the ILO but we did not bring it for domestication into Parliament which we should have done then as quickly as possible. We thought that by that time it was a black Government and there was no forced labour.
I want to thank the Minister for bringing it because our women have been trafficked to Kuwait, those that read papers; you have seen a lot of women taken to Kuwait. There are promised good jobs there like airhostess, nurses, et cetera. When you get there, you are then sold like a slave and you are not paid anything. You are kept in the house and you sleep outside like a dog. So, the ratification of this one will then eliminate the forced labour situation. Yes, certainly in this country, we have some nationals that come and try to do forced labour. I am encouraged that the Minister talked about Kuwait and I will also talk about these nationals that come and start to do forced labour, the Chinese people. They are the ones that are culprits to this issue of forced labour. We are urging the Minister that she has got labour officers that go around, they must check on that because that is very important.
We will not want our people to be abused; we were abused enough 100 years ago, remember the Europeans came into this country in 1890 and we only got our independence in 1980, that is 100 years [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – in 1890 and got our independence in 1990, I can be mixing the dates but certainly I am right, we were colonized for 100 years. I also stayed under colonialism, some of the guys here might not have stayed under colonialism because 1980, we became independent and 1981, they were born and there was freedom.
I certainly support the ratification of this one and also urge that it be put it in an Act as quickly as possible because the problem that we have got is we have got a lot of procrastination of things. We do not do things as quickly as possible. Let me thank the Minister for bringing this up and let us have an enactment of this Protocol. I thank you Mr.
President.
HON. SEN. MAKORE: Thank you Hon. President for giving me this opportunity to say a few words. I also want to thank our Minister for bringing this forced labour convention. Generally, what we are discussing is very common. You see a lot of such exploitation going on. Forced labour is very common – the youth, women or everyone is sexually abused. I have stood to thank you because of the fact that you have brought this up. We believe it will take us a mile stone in addressing the current issues which we have been in practice for years. If this can be eliminated in terms of the focus that you have given this august House, that this Convention is going to eliminate that, it will be a very welcome development to this society. I do believe that such laws are long overdue. This was mentioned in this House by the previous speaker that this was common in a colonial state whereby people were forced during the early days when people wanted to force in order to achieve their maximum production.
They intended to force people even to do excess work or overtime as a result of wanting to achieve their goals but because of this independence, it appears surprising. It is coming on track where everybody is expected to be free and make a choice and work within reasonable conditions. With these few additions, I thank you Mr.
President.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: Thank you Mr. President. I would also want to add my voice on this motion.
This is a welcome development. We have been waiting for this motion for quite a long time. You will find that the people who are mostly affected by forced labour are women. It is not only Kuwait which is doing that – even our neighbouring countries are fond of doing that. You find that Zimbabwean women are taken to neighbouring countries being promised jobs. When they get there, alas, they do not even get those jobs. Even before they get to their destination, they are abused on the way, especially those who will be crossing to South Africa. As I have often seen as someone who stays near the border, you find that these women and children between the ages of 1213 years wanting to go and seek for employment in South Africa; they have a mammoth task to do because they will not be having passports or money for transport. They have to jump the borders. It is not easy to do so because there are people manning borders even at undesignated points and for them to cross those rivers, there have to be abused in a way or another because there is someone who will be manning the border. He would want some favours before the women cross that river.
As you approach the gates of South Africa, you will find someone again waiting for some favours for you to get to South Africa. When you get to South Africa, you know noone. You want employment and you are taken for a ride. They will say we will give you work but at the end of the day, you are not even given that work but you are abused. It is not only the Kuwait Government that was doing that. It is happening all over the show. We need to work hard. Even though it is ratified, I do not think it is never too late, we have to work very hard in order to assist our people who are suffering – the women and the girl child because instead of these girls going to school, they are taken for granted. They will be given work somewhere and at the end of the day, they are not given money.
For those that are said to be employed I visited some place sometime ago and I found that there was a place in the communal areas which was called Zimbabwe in a foreign country, whereby most of our girls were staying near a dam. For them to survive, they were molding bricks. The men would go up the mountains to collect firewood to burn those bricks. They were not getting anything. They had to be kept there without being disturbed by that Government whilst they worked for it. It was a very painful situation.
If this treaty or protocol is made authentic, I think it will minimise some of these problems that I am highlighting. With these few words, I fully support this motion. I thank you.
HON. SEN. MAKONE: Thank you Mr. President Sir. I just want to add a few words to what my colleagues have already mentioned. I also want to thank the Minister sincerely for bringing this motion to this House.
As she said, this protocol was probably acceded to by the
Zimbabwean Government a long time ago. I do not know why we take so long to finally bring to the House something that is of benefit to our people. I can only conclude that we are participants to the abuse of labour ourselves. I am not even going to talk about foreign countries. I know what happens in foreign countries. It has been stated by the speakers who spoke before me.
I want to talk about what we are doing here ourselves. When all this is done and complete, I would want to know what kind of punishment should be meted out to ourselves when we do this to each other. We do have people who work on our farms that are not being paid salaries. They are given a small patch of land on which to grow food for themselves and that is their salary. It is happening right now. That is now what we consider forced labour. In the old days, they were not being paid a lot of money but at least they knew that come monthend, my salary is five dollars and I get a bag of beans and a bar of soap.
At least there was a salary.
It is very sad that even as I speak now, there are people who look and feel aggrieved. You should not do this because we now want to change things. It is a new era, as the President said. Let us call a spade a spade so that change comes from within before we take it outside the country. This rule applies more to us than it does to other people. They see how we treat ourselves. For instance, those young men who are digging for gold, there are people with teams of people that go and dig that gold. They risk their lives. Some of them get buried underneath but they get a fraction of the amount of money that comes out of the gold, not even enough to sustain themselves, but the people, the real barons of this gold are millionaires. So, really let us start first by correcting inside ourselves.
Minister, I want to thank you very much and we are going to support you, but when all this is said and done, I would like you to bring another Bill which talks to what we do with people who continue to flout the law that we are going to pass in this House. Thank you Mr.
President.
HON. SEN. MUMVURI: Thank you Mr. President. I also rise to support the protocol, especially so after the last speaker who has brought the problems at home where we flout these rules.
From the definition given by the Minister that forced labour includes among others, but not limited to it is going beyond the stipulated duty which somebody has been employed to do. If for example, Hon. Sen. Makone has talked about the farms. I totally agree with that, but we also have domestic workers who when they are employed, they are given the basics of what they are expected to do then as time goes on, our wives and mothers pile more duties on the domestic workers. For example, the domestic worker is asleep and she is forced to wake up and cook when her stipulated hour of working is beyond that time.
There are also others you might think are trivial. They do chores to look after us the husbands instead of the wives looking after us and then they go beyond that. They wash what is not washable. I think it is part of forced labour. Yes, it is a warning to us. Please, let them do what they have been employed to do. They are not employed to look after us the husbands but they are employed to do the chores, look after the children and so forth. The bedroom is not their baby – [Laughter.] It is forced labour from the definition that fits into the forced labour.
Then the question is, I want to know the breach of these protocols, the three of them. The first one, I was not there. I came in when she was reading the second one. In the absence of a regional Parliament when these labour laws, protocols are breached, who enforces the law so that the culprits are punished because the national laws we have at the Parliament here South Africa, they have and Botswana they have, but the regional Parliament does not exist in SADC especially. In European countries, they have a European parliament.
Apart from that, I want to welcome this move. What we are discussing here is very progressive. It is for the regional cooperation and we must fully subscribe to it. Minister, thank you again for bringing them here. I want to thank you very much Mr. President.
THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE
(HON. KAGONYE): Thank you Mr. President and I would like to thank the Hon. Senators for their contributions. Of particular note, I think is a contribution that the Chinese nationals are actually also engaged in forced labour. I would like to implore the Hon. Senator and other Hon. Senators in here, where you meet such situations, may you kindly inform our office also so that we can send our inspectors so that action is done, but also with evidence to what we would be talking about.
Otherwise for the other comments, I am quite happy the Hon. Senators are aware of what they and others are doing. I think it is up to us to own up and stop forced labour. We have got NECs that are in place, we have got various organisations that represent workers that are in place and we have got the Ministry. As Government, we are only the referee between the employers and the employees and we are there to ensure that we enforce what is agreed and where it is not being met. I am sure if you let us know, we will also assist in making sure our workers are protected. Otherwise, I would also want to thank Hon. Senators for all their contributions.
For the last question who is supposed to implement the SADC protocols where they are breached? I think that question is best answered by the Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs. So, when he is here maybe, he can be directed to respond to that question. Thank you.
Motion put and agreed to.
COMMITTEE STAGE
PUBLIC ENTITIES CORPORATE GOVERNANCE BILL [H. B 5A,
2017]
Fourth Order read: Committee Stage: Public Entities Corporate
Governance Bill [H. B. 5A, 2017]
House in Committee.
Clauses 1 to 46 put and agreed to.
First, Second and Third Schedules put and agreed to.
House resumed.
Bill reported without amendments.
Third Reading: With leave, forthwith.
THIRD READING
PUBLIC ENTITIES CORPORATE GOVERNANCE BILL [H. B. 5A,
2017].
THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. MUKUPE): Mr. President, I now move
that the Bill be read the third time.
Motion put and agreed to.
Bill read the third time.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. SEN. TAWENGWA: Mr. President, I move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 5 and 6 be stood over until the rest of the Orders of the Day have been disposed of.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE DELEGATION TO THE WORLD
PARLIAMENTARY FORUM ON SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT
HON. SEN. CHIEF MTSHANE: Mr. President, I move the motion standing in my name that this House takes note of the Report of the delegation to the World Parliamentary Forum on Sustainable
Development held in Bali, Indonesia from 6th to 7th September, 2017.
HON. SEN. S. NCUBE: I second.
HON. SEN. CHIEF MTSHANE:
INTRODUCTION
1.1 Hon. Advocate Jacob Francis Mudenda, Speaker of the National
Assembly, led a Parliamentary delegation to attend the World Parliamentary Forum on Sustainable Development which was held in Bali, Indonesia, from 6 to 7 September 2017. The Forum was attended by 49 countries and several civil society organisations.
The theme of the forum was, “Achieving the 2030 Agenda through Inclusive Development.” The Speaker was accompanied by the following Members of Parliament and Officers of Parliament:
Hon. Monica Mutsvangwa, Member of Parliament;
Hon. Thokozani Khupe, Member of Parliament;
Hon. Chief M. Khumalo, Member of Parliament
Mr. Frank Mike Nyamahowa, Director in the Speaker’s Office;
Mr. Robert Sibanda, Security – Aide to the Speaker; and
Mrs. Chiwoneso Mataruka, Committee Clerk and Secretary to the delegation.
2.0 OPENING REMARKS BY THE CHAIRPERSON FOR
INTERPARLIAMENTARY COOPERATION
2.1 The Chairperson of the Committee for InterParliamentary Cooperation, Dr. Nurhayati Ali Assegaf welcomed delegates to the first ever Parliamentary Forum on Sustainable Development which ran under the theme, “Achieving the 2030 Agenda through Inclusive Development.” She stressed the role of Parliament as follows:
2.1.1 Promoting sustainable development and climate action as well as consideration of its adverse impacts through support and implementation of the 2030 Agenda Programmes;
2.1.2 Ending violence and sustaining peace around the world;
2.1.3 That Parliaments corroborate with international organisations such as UNDP, International NGO Forum and European Union in order to achieve sustainable development through resource mobilisation.
2.2 KEY NOTE ADDRESS BY H.E. MR. SETYA
NOVANTO, SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA
2.2.1 His Excellency Novanto stressed the importance for Parliaments’ obligation and responsibility in spearheading the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development.
2.2.2 The Honourable Speaker observed that poverty was the major challenge in the attainment of SDGs as more than 700 million people of the world population are living below the poverty datum line.
2.2.3 He also stressed that conflict and violence contributed immensely to poverty of any nation because without peace there is no development.
2.2.4 He affirmed that Parliaments must strive for a healthy society for all, gender equality and the empowering of women and girls.
3.0 PLENARY SESSION ON SDGs AND CLIMATE
ACTION
3.1 The session was chaired by H.E. Mr Fahri Hamzah, Vice Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives, and the following issues were discussed:
3.1.1 That climate change is the greatest challenge humanity faces in the 21st century. The Paris Climate Conference held in 2015 had already set a global plan of action which needs implementation by public and private sectors.
3.1.2 The Paris Agreement on Climate Change needs a legal framework for policy implementation.
3.1.3 Approximately $100 billion is required annually by developing countries in order to combat climate change effects.
3.1.4 That education and awareness on the effects of climate change must be embraced by all stakeholders including civil society.
4.0 PLENARY SESSION ON ENDING VIOLENCE AND
SUSTAINING PEACE
4.1 The session was chaired by H.E. Mr Fadli Zon, Vice Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives, and the following issues were discussed as measures to “End Violence and Sustain Peace.”
4.1.1 Accordingly, Parliaments were urged to pursue the following issues:
4.1.2 That there is equitable allocation of financial resources for women’s participation in politics, elections and societal issues;
4.1.3 To align national legislation with Security Council Resolutions on gender violence in order to promote zero tolerance to violence;
4.1.4 To foster a more tolerant and inclusive society in conformity with SDG 16, “which promotes peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, providing access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels;
4.1.5 Ensure that the national justice systems are robust anywhere in the world so as to promote democratic processes and principles which respect human rights;
4.1.6 That Parliaments should promote indigenous knowledge and cultures in order to promote social inclusivity and ethics in the implementation of SDGs.
5.0 PLENARY ON PROMOTING INCLUSIVE AND
EQUITABLE DEVELOPMENT
5.1 Dr. Nurhayati Ali Assegaf, Chairperson of the Committee on InterParliamentary Cooperation, chaired the session and the following issues were raised:
5.1.1 That economic growth should be the main thrust of sustainable development.
5.1.2 That health and global food security are key in the implementation of SDGs.
5.1.3 That the Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) are key drivers in implementing SDGs.
5.1.4 Zimbabwe presented Zimbabwe’s current status in plenary as follows:
5.1.5 That the Zimbabwe government has anchored its implementation of SDGs on ZIMASSET supported by ZUNDAF under the guidance of the Office of the President and Cabinet (OPC) working together with Parliament.
5.1.6 That non state actors in civil society should form effective partnerships that will make SDGs a reality.
5.1.7 That Parliaments must demonstrate political will in the effective implementation of national policies that promote SDGs.
6.0 CONCLUSION
6.1 Arising from the declaration, our national Parliament is supposed to
come up with a clear policy on how to implement SDGs within a given time frame.
The World Parliamentary Forum on Sustainable Development concluded its
deliberations by making a Bali Declaration which reads as follows:
BALI DECLARATION
Achieving the 2030 Agenda through inclusive Development
World Parliamentary Forum on Sustainable Development
Bali, 67 September 2017
We, Parliamentarians from 49 countries gathered in Bali, Indonesia on the occasion of the World Parliamentary Forum on Sustainable Development (WPSD), under the initiative of the House of
Representatives of the Republic of Indonesia on 67 September 2017, hereby affirm as follows:
Recalling that the international community, through the United
Nations General Assembly, has adopted the Declaration on
“Transforming Our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development” on 25 September 2015, which contains 17 Goals and 169 targets of Sustainable Development Goal (SDGs);
Reaffirming that national efforts to achieve progress and sustainable development is deeply rooted in the national needs and priorities supported by and in conformity with the national agenda, policies and legislation;
Emphasizing that the continued active involvement of
Parliamentarians can help to ensure effective implementation and timely realization of the SDGs, through, inter alia, enactment of relevant legislation, adoption of enabling budgets, and discussions from all segments of society, and are equally beneficial to all;
Acknowledging that the IPU at its 136th Assembly held in Dhaka, 5 April 2017 has highlighted that effective implementation of SDGs requires inclusive and broadbased developmental processes, which allow wider participation and discussions from all segments of society, and are equally beneficial to all;
Underlining that eradicating poverty in all its forms and dimension, including extreme poverty, is the greatest global challenge and an indispensable requirement for sustainable development, recognizing gender discrimination while reiterating its commitment to achieving sustainable development in its three dimensions in a balanced and integrated manner;
Reaffirming that there can be no sustainable development without peace and no peace without sustainable development, and therefore, underscoring the importance of inclusive societies which are free from fear and violence, and in this regard, expressing deep concern on the ongoing violence in Rakhine State of Myanmar;
Further reaffirming that freedom, peace and security, respect for a;; human rights, the rule of law, gender equality and women’s empowerment as well as the overall commitment to fair, just and democratic societies for development, are among the main prerequisites in ensuring the full timely achievement of the SDGs;
Mindful also of the United Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Agreement adopted under the Convention, and reiterating the determination to address decisively the threat posed by climate change and environmental degradation recognizing that the global nature of climate change calls for the widest possible international and regional cooperation and partnerships aimed at accelerating the reduction of global greenhouse gas emissions and addressing adaptation to the adverse impacts of climate change;
Having deliberated, during the Parliamentary Forum, the issues of promoting inclusive and equitable development (leaving no one behind), ending violence and sustain peace, and enhancing climate actions:
- Commit to step up efforts, at all levels and in partnership with all stakeholders, including Parliamentarians, Governments, civil society, businesses and philanthropies, mass media, think tanks and academia, to ensure effective implementation of the Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs).
- Resolve to promote legislation and budget formulation that supports the implementation of SDGs, facilitate inclusive development and advance the principle of leaving no one behind;
- Undertake to enhance the role of Parliamentarians in strengthening democracy with respect to human rights regardless of race, ethnicity and religion, good governance and the rule of law, as well
as promote an enabling environment at the national, regional and international levels, and to equip them with access to relevant research and data to the SDGs;
On Leaving No One Behind:
- Ensure that people of all groups, including those who are vulnerable and marginalised are not left behind, and therefore encourage countries to take into account all peoples perspectives, irrespective of gender, age, race or ethnicity, and persons with disabilities, migrants, indigenous people and local communities, children and youth in the development of and assessment of sustainable development policies, strategies and programmes and facilitate their engagement with the political processes well as their access to elected offices;
- Commit to strengthen national ownership of the goals, including through mainstreaming and implementing the SDGs into enforceable National Development Plan that respond to country specific development priorities, promoting its awareness to the constituency by ensuring that all legal frameworks and budgetary requirements sufficiently support the national policy on SDGs through effective regular oversight mechanism regarding
Government’s accountability to the people for national progress on the SDGs;
- Work towards further empowerment of the poor and the most vulnerable by promoting and facilitating policies that advance social and financial inclusion, gender equity, connectivity, and thereby reducing development gaps;
- Urge Governments to work closely with the Parliaments in the development of global accountability and promote parliamentary perspectives in global dialogues and meetings on SDGs, in particular the UN High Level Political Forum (HLPF) on Sustainable Development and parliamentary involvement on relevant national reports;
On Ending Violence and Sustaining Peace:
- Acknowledge the importance of sustain peace as an underlining principle in addressing potential conflicts and post – conflicts through peaceful means, preventive diplomacy and dialogue, including confidence building measures, and pledge to pursue peace through the promotion of inclusive dialogue, including through InterParliamentary dialogues;
- Work towards the realization of peaceful, just and inclusive societies which are free from fear and violence and in which the needs of the most vulnerable are met through Parliamentary means, including, inter alia, enacting enabling legislations and through oversight mechanisms:
- Express deep concern of ongoing violence of Rakhine State of Myanmar, amongst others, and call on all parties to contribute to the restoration of stability and security, exercise maximum selfrestrain from using violent means, respect the human rights of all people in Rakhine State, regardless of their faith and ethnicity, as well as facilitate and guarantee safe access for humanitarian assistance;
- Promote and facilitate equal access to justice, respect for human rights, effective rule of law and good governance, as well as inclusive, transparent, effective and accountable institutions at all levels;
- Determined to work closely with the government and all stakeholders in ensuring effective law enforcement to combat all forms of violence, paying special attention to the needs of women and children and those in vulnerable situations;
On Enhancing Climate Actions:
- Commit to scale up actions to combat climate change and environmental degradation and their impacts through
Parliamentary means; inter alia enactment of climate change and environmentally sound legislation, adoption of budget to programmes to reduce emissions and strengthen adaptation, ensuring that accountability for the effective implementation of the national commitments, including in conducting regular oversight on the implementation of the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and other related commitments under the Paris Agreement framework;
- Urge developed countries to provide means of implementation including financial resources to assist developing countries with respect to both mitigation and adaptation actions and with a view to strengthen access of developing countries to climate financing and environmentally sound technology in line with the Paris
Agreement;
- Work with all stakeholders at national, regional and global levels in promoting and raising the awareness of and building campaign on combating climate change and environmental degradations;
THE WAY FORWARD:
- Invite all stakeholders including Governments, international development partners, international organizations, civil society, businesses, philanthropies, mass media, thinktanks and academia to continue working closely with the Parliaments to support effective, coherent and accountable implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and in this regard, extend appreciation for their active participation in the WPSD;
- Decide to continue regular holdings of WPSD as a global parliamentary dialogue on sustainable development with the aim to bring to more parliamentary discourse on the SDGs.
HON. SEN. TAWENGWA: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MAKORE: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 14th March, 2018.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. SEN. TAWENGWA: I move that Orders of the Day Numbers 8 to 14 be stood over until Orders of the Day Numbers 15 and
16 have been disposed of.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE ZIMBABWE DELEGATION TO THE
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON PROMOTING
STAKEHOLDER AND PARLIAMENTARY DIALOGUE ON THE
ARMS TRADE TREATY (ATT)
Fifteenth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of the Zimbabwe delegation to the International Conference on Promoting
Stakeholder and Parliamentary Dialogue on Arms Trade Treaty.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. TIMVEOS: Thank you Mr. President for affording me this opportunity. I just want to thank all the Hon. Members that contributed to this motion. I know it was a very difficult motion to debate because of the arms trade treaty.
I think as the mover of the motion, because Zimbabwe signed this treaty, maybe if we could have had a workshop, maybe it was going to help so that Hon. Members understand what the Arms Trade Treaty is all about. They were going to debate from a well informed position but I want to thank every Hon. Member who contributed to the motion.
Zimbabwe is committed to the global efforts to prevent and eradicate the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons which is why we signed this. What we are left with is to ratify and domesticate. I really want to urge the Executive to please ratify the Arms Trade Treaty with speed, domesticate it and also appeal to the Committees on Peace and Security and Home Affairs to study the Arms Trade Treaty and work hand in hand with the Minister to actually push the Executive to ratify.
We have signed like I said but we are lagging behind. So many countries have signed and they have ratified and domesticated in Africa. I am so happy that about two weeks ago, I was in South Africa and our Hon. President of the Chiefs Council was there. We were talking about this particular treaty and he understands it better. I also saw other Hon. Members like Hon. Dr. Mashakada. Quite a few now know what this treaty is all about. I am really pushing that as a country, we must ratify and domesticate this treaty.
Hon. Members, I thank you so much for debating this motion. I now kindly ask that this House takes note of the Report of the Zimbabwe delegation to the International Conference on Promoting Stakeholder and Parliamentary Dialogue on the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) held at
Pullman Teranga Hotel in Dakar, Senegal from 13th to 14th June, 2017.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE 7TH RETREAT OF THE ASSOCIATION OF
SENATES, SHOORA AND EQUIVALENT COUNCILS IN AFRICA
AND THE ARAB WORLD (ASSECAA)
Sixteenth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of the 7th Retreat of the Association of Senates, Shoora and equivalent
Councils in Africa and the Arab World (ASSECAA).
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MAKORE: Thank you Hon. President. I want to thank all Hon. Members who contributed to this motion. This motion was in relation to climate change and you echoed exactly what was within the report and made recommendations that at least there must be some education for people to understand that climate is gradually changing with excessive heat, floods, desertification, hunger and starvation. It was also noted Mr. President that for reparations, we have Africa contributing only 8% of green house gas whereas the developed countries are contributing about 92%, of which $100 billion has to be poured into the reparation of the climate change in terms of expected reparations.
I now move that this House takes note of the Report of the 7th
Retreat of the Association of Senates, Shoora and equivalent Councils in
Africa and the Arab World (ASSECAA), held form the 26th to 27th
November 2016 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Motion put and agreed to.
On the motion of HON. SEN. TAWENGWA, seconded by HON. SEN. B. SIBANDA, the Senate adjourned at Twenty Minutes past Four o’clock p.m.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Tuesday, 13th March, 2018
The Senate met at Halfpast Two o’clock p. m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE
SENATE
JOINT SITTING RULES OF PARLIAMENT
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I wish to inform
the House that the proposed Joint Sitting Rules of Parliament were circulated through Hon. Senators’ pigeon holes. Hon. Senators are requested to submit their inputs to the Counsel to Parliament by
Thursday 22nd March, 2018.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF FINNANCE AND
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. MUKUPE): Madam
President, I move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 1 to 3 on the Order Paper be stood over until Order of the Day, Number 4 has been disposed
Motion put and agreed to.
SECOND READING
PUBLIC ENTITIES CORPORATE GOVERNANCE BILL [H. B. 5A,
2017]
Fourth Order read: Second Reading: Public Entities Corporate
Governance Bill [H. B. 5A, 2017].
THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT (HON. MUKUPE): Madam President, it is my honour to move that the Public Entities Corporate Governance Bill H.B. 5A, 2017 be read a second time.
Madam President, section 195 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe provides that all companies and commercial interests in which the State has a significant interest must conduct their business in order to ensure commercial viability and they must abide by generally accepted standards of good corporate governance.
Hitherto, our State entities which could otherwise have been, amongst other things, playing a vital role in contributing to the revenue realised by Government, presenting employment opportunities to our citizens, producing export receipts as well as products for domestic consumption have been instead the proverbial albatross around the neck of our national economy.
The vicious and costly cycle of underperformance plaguing the parastatals sector requires an urgent and focused intervention and this, in part, has informed the reason behind the development of the Public Entities Corporate Governance Bill.
Previous efforts to encourage compliance with sound corporate governance principles such as the Corporate Governance Framework for
State Enterprises and Parastatals in 2010 and more recently, the National Code on Corporate Governance in 2015 have been largely unheeded by most public entities and in equal extent by their responsible line
Ministers.
Resultantly, the Auditor General’s Report on State Enterprises and Parastatals for the year ending 31 December 2016 once again, revealed ongoing deeprooted and farreaching governance problems within the State enterprises sector and self evidently underlined the continuing failure by line Ministers to meaningfully address those problems.
That notwithstanding, Madam President, this Bill signals the latest step in Government’s ongoing efforts to bring order and rationality to
the parastatals sector and to ensure that such entities once again make a positive contribution to national economic growth.
In many instances, management blames poor performance and unsatisfactory service delivery on the prevailing economic situation even where the company they superintend has a virtual monopoly and Government support in the sector in which it operates. However, upon closer scrutiny, the reality that invariably emerges is that in a good number of the cases, it is the management itself which is the root cause bedeviling the company.
Madam President, while primary responsibility for the management of public entities lies with the boards and management of the public entities, it is also clear that line Ministers, under whose jurisdiction a parastatal falls, have been failing to provide effective oversight over the entities which fall under their purview.
Ministers must consider the success of their respective parastatals as a measure of their own effectiveness and should insist on compliance with sound corporate governance principles in order to curtail some of the shocking management excesses which have emerged and have become a defining attribute of the sector. I speak here in respect of some of the vulgar salary and benefit packages some managers and board directors have awarded themselves during their incumbencies.
The Public Entities Corporate Governance Bill is designed to address these issues by bringing order, structure, transparency and consistency to this important sector of our economy. It also seeks to further empower line ministries to exercise far stricter oversight of their respective entities and to ensure that those entities operate in line with sound corporate governance principles and practices as enshrined in the Bill.
In essence, amongst other aspects, the Bill gives legal force and effect to the National Code on Corporate Governance which is incorporated into the Bill as the First Schedule.
Madam President, I shall now proceed to highlight a few aspects of the Bill for the benefit of the House and in order to add some perspective to what the Bill seeks to achieve.
Scope of Application
As far as the coverage of the Bill is concerned in terms of Clause 3 as read with Clause 2 (1), the Bill shall apply to all public entities which are identified as institutions whose operations or activities are substantially controlled by the State or by a person on behalf of the State whether through ownership of a majority of shares in the entity or otherwise and these include:
- A statutory body;
- A public commercial entity; and
- An entity established under an agreement for a partnership or joint venture between the State and any other person.
Save as otherwise provided for in the Bill, it shall therefore be mandatory at law for all institutions falling under this description to abide by the tenets of the corporate governance principles espoused herein.
Corporate Governance Unit
Clause 5 of the Bill will create a new Corporate Governance Unit as a department within the Office of the President and Cabinet whose functions shall be:
- To provide an advisory and centralised support mechanism for line ministries to ensure strict compliance by all public entities with the provisions of the Act;
- To advise line ministries with regard to the regular evaluation of the performance of public entities and their boards and employees;
- To oversee the discharge by line ministries of their responsibility to monitor compliance by boards and senior management with the performance contracts;
- To establish and maintain up to date, a comprehensive directory or database accessible to all line Ministers and boards that will enable them to identify suitably qualified candidates for appointment to boards of public entities; and
- To advise on the provision by line ministries of programmes for the professional development of board members and senior management of all public entities under their purview, including board induction programmes and corporate governance training for board members, chief executive officers and other senior members of management.
In other words, the Corporate Governance Unit will offer continuing support to the line ministries and the public entities concerned to ensure compliance with the tenets of good corporate governance.
Madam President, the appointment of board members must be carried out in the most transparent way possible and each appointment must be based purely on merit.
As such, it shall be incumbent upon the appointing authority to furnish the unit with the qualifications of the proposed appointee and to explain what distinguishes that appointee from the rest. I refer Hon. Members to Clause 11 (12) on this point.
Board appointees and senior management shall have a duty to declare their assets prior to assumptions of office in terms of Clause 37. Declaration of assets will place a duty upon an appointee to explain the source of their income under circumstances in which there is an inordinate expansion of wealth during or immediately after their incumbency.
Remuneration of NonExecutive Members of Public Entities and Conditions of Service of Executive Members of Public Entities
Clause 12 of the Bill addresses issues surrounding the payment of nonexecutive members of public entities. Madam President, in short, the appointing Minister shall, in consultation with the Minister responsible for Finance, develop a remuneration framework which shall form the basis upon which payment scales are formulated. That remuneration framework is in turn submitted for Cabinet approval before it is implemented.
Issues such as the experience and qualifications of a member of the State entity as well as the prevalent salary scale amongst their peers will be of a persuasive value, but not in itself a benchmark upon which a board member can lay a demand.
The crucial issue here, Madam President, is that the salaries will be paid depending on how a public entity is performing and how profitable it is at a given time.
Clause 13 provides for the conditions of service of executive members of public entities. Similar to the above, the Minister responsible for the administration of the Public Sector Corporate Governance Bill shall develop model conditions of service for executive members which will be adhered to and subject to revision where exigencies require so.
Restriction on Remuneration of Board Members of Public
Entities
Madam President, Clause 14 is of vital importance in addressing the ludicrous remuneration that members of certain public entities have been awarding themselves.
Under subClause 1, the Minister assigned to the administration of the Act with the approval of the Minister responsible for finance and after consultation with the line Minister concerned, shall by notice publish in the Gazette specify the amount that may be received by way of remuneration, allowances and other benefits by members of the board of any public entity.
This clause will allow a ceiling to be set on the amount of remuneration board members may receive or even specify an exact amount payable if a member breaches the remuneration set in terms of this provision, they will become liable to a surcharge for the purposes of recouping the value of money improperly paid out to such members.
Strategic Plans of Public Entities
Madam President, each public entity shall be expected to draw up a carefully considered Strategic Plan that maps out their intended objectives over a period of two to six years and how they intend on achieving such objectives. This is in terms of Clause 22 of the Bill.
The strategic plan will include performance indicators against which the company can benchmark its own performance and will ensure that their entity strives for a commonly held and understood objective. These strategic plans will be available for public inspection.
Performance contracts with senior staff of public entities
- Closely related to this is the new concept of performance contracts that will be entered into by the Chief Executive Officer or a senior member of a public entity that clearly spells our his or her deliverables. These are provided under Clause 23.
- Where such a CEO or senior member of the public entity fail to achieve the set out goals, they become liable to dismissal in terms of the contract. The motivation to succeed here is apparent, and these officers must ensure that they deliver on their key objectives.
Meetings of boards of public entities
- Clause 33 will require boards to meet at least once every three months and to convene an annual meeting of stakeholders once a year to be known as the “annual general meeting”. They will also have to meet their line Ministers at least twice a year to provide feedback on operations and discuss any other such pertinent issues.
- Additionally, in order to ensure that the Board continues to function, if the membership of a board falls below a quorum, the board will be allowed to meet for up to 90 days pending the appointment of new members, but any decisions reached by the board during that time will be subject to ratification when a quorum has been formed in terms of subclause 2.
Conflicts of interest on part of board members and staff of public entities.
- Clause 34 will require members of boards and senior staff of public entities to declare conflicts of interest and prohibit them from taking part in their entities’ business where there is such a conflict. Failure to do so will result in the member or senior staff member ceasing to hold office.
Madam President, with this presentation, it is my singular owner and pleasure to move that the Public Entities Corporate Governance Bill
[H. B. 5, 2017] be now read a second time. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. MASHAVAKURE: Thank you Madam President.
I have heard what the Minister has said and what the Bill intends to address. I have one or two things that I will seek clarity on. He firstly said there will be a Corporate Governance Unit that will be based in the President’s Office. At times we talk of the deduction of civil servants but previous Bills were creating structures that increase the civil service. May you comment on that issue?
In other words, can he come up with alternatives that may not lead to the construction of the structure which will increase the number of the civil servants when we were indeed reducing civil servants? Secondly, he talked of a database of people who are believed to be qualified as members of these boards. In this database, is it going to have all the names because the majority of Zimbabweans are educated – who is going to shortlist these members and what criteria is going to be used to select these people? This may also lead to nepotism and all other malpractices where those who are not qualified end up being in that database. So I go back to the need for clarity on criteria of the members of this database.
He talked of need for strict supervision on these parastatals. A few years ago we heard that there were Permanent Secretaries who were chairpersons of boards and at one time he ran the boards single handedly. I think the Permanent Secretaries should not chair boards of public entities but to be exofficio members because if we make them the chairpersons and so on, we would have gone back to the problems that we have faced before. To me they did not draft form me this Bill in Braille so, I want them to tell me that when they read, was it written that the Permanent Secretaries and other senior Government officials who are civil servants would not become board members or chairpersons of such boards that we are talking about. Thank you Madam President.
HON. SEN. NYAMBUYA: Thank you very much Madam
President. I just want to make very few quick points in support of this very important Bill which the Minister has brought before this august House. In my view, this Bill was actually long overdue. I think we have gone for a very long time as a country without making the do’s and don’ts of State owned enterprises to the extent that, the way we have operated, some of them as a result of not having clear guidelines, have lead to poor management which in some cases leading to financial hemorrhage and unnecessary losses which could have been avoided. That is why I support wholeheartedly and indeed very strongly this Bill which aims to strengthen corporate governance, which is the heart and core of business if we want to manage businesses intelligently and properly.
The first point that I would want to make is, that we are moving in the right direction but we should go further than this. We should go further and ensure that the State owned enterprises which we have – make nomistake about that the State owned enterprises are good. They help to generate economic activity, they help to bring about competition and in some cases, and even prices are reduced as a result of participation by the Government in the economy. They are good, but I think that it is also high time that whilst we are doing this exercise that we ensure that some of these State owned enterprises which I now call dead capital must actually be gotten rid of in one way or another.
I think we need to expedite that exercise, otherwise they will remain dead capital and potential capital which is not being exploited for the benefit of Zimbabweans.
The second point again which I will make and I am glad that the Hon. Minister has actually done some justice to this area is the issue of ensuring that the boards which are appointed by Government do not become a burden on these SOEs. I have known and I have witnessed and seen some chairmen of these boards who act as if they are Executive chairmen. I have experienced and actually seen some boards that have not given direction but have interfered with management, to the extent that they render management irrelevant and their interference causes and results in poor management. So, I am glad once again that the Hon.
Minister has given due attention to this very important aspect.
The last point that I want to make Madam President, is the issue of a culture that is now existing in our society – a culture of entitlement. We have got a culture, especially in SOEs whereby people come, sit in their offices and do literally nothing or very little, but want to be paid at the end of the month, they want to be paid a salary. This is not in the public service alone but in the private sector as well. A culture of entitlement is not good for any country at all. People should ask themselves, what is it that they have done to deserve a salary at the end of the month? So I am again glad that this Bill is giving some attention to this disease of entitlement that is now harming our society. I therefore, would like to congratulate the Hon. Minister for a job well done and wish him well in this regard. I thank you.
HON. SEN. MARAVA: Thank you Madam President, first of all I want to bring this point to the attention of this House. This very important Bill is just being placed in the pigeonholes now and a lot of these Hon. Members do not have it – [HON. SENATORS: Inaudible interjections.] – As Hon. Members walk out, they will see it in their pigeonholes. Anyway– [HON. SENATORS: Inaudible interjections.] – musaramba zvandaona zviripo.
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: Hon. Marava,
may I please advise you that this is an amended Bill that you have just received. The original was issued to us a long time ago. The National Assembly made some amendments, that is the one that is in front of us now – the amended one. – [HON. SEN. MARAVA: The amended one which should have been placed in our pigeonholes…] – But the original one, you have had it for a long time.
HON. SEN. MARAVA: But the amended one is the latest
version is it not?
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: But this was just
passed last week and we are now sitting in here. The day it was passed they immediately advised us that they had passed the Bill and we announced it. – [HON. SEN. MARAVA: Madam President you are the authority.]. Today is Tuesday and this announcement was made on Thursday was it not? You see?
HON. SEN. MARAVA: It is fine Madam President, I am happy that at least you agree with me that we should have had the amended one.
Anyway Madam President, I want to thank you for recognising me.
It has been mentioned severally by our Government that loss making State owned enterprises were going to be privatised. It has been over and over again, but if you look at the action as to how many such enterprises have been privatised todate, you will be shocked. The percentage is almost very close to zero. Madam President, that system should be stopped and that situation has to change. It must be seen to be changing. We do not have to continue promising that lossmaking companies are going to be privatised then we do not action on it. I think action is very important when it comes to this because like what one
Hon. Member mentioned, people do not stop thinking what it that stops Government from privatising this thing? Is it chizivano or whatever, all those things? People will talk and will not stop talking.
Madam President, these Hon. Members will not be there to answer.
So please, mine is a short contribution, let us walk the talk. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. MAKORE: Thank you Madam President,…
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: Hon. Sen.
Makore, I called upon Hon. Sen. Sibanda to contribute after thanking Hon. Marava for his contribution. I have to stick to the list that I have here because we list your names as you rise. So, it is only good to be fair.
HON. SEN. MAKORE: Thank you Madam President.
HON. SEN. SIBANDA: Madam President I think that certain jokes that one can make in the House are not necessarily recorded. I wanted to tell my colleague and surname sharer here that I am the bigger
Sibanda – [Laughter.] –
Be that as it may, I would like to make some contribution to the presentation made by the Hon. Minister. I have often received the answer; it is better late than never. I do not like the answer, I have never enjoyed it and I will not enjoy it. Hon. Minister, what I am getting at is that the national Constitution is about five years old. When we are dealing with commercial enterprises, we are dealing with business and it has taken our own Government five years to react to some lossmaking enterprises. It is unsatisfactory and poor performance.
The second point that I want to make is it is this poor performance that has led us to a plethora of Debt Assumption Bills and activities in these Houses. Once again, I am saying that debt assumption is the wrong way to run business and the wrong way to run a country. Unless we clean up our act, we will continue with debt assumption and talk about parastatals. Having said that, let me hasten to add that legislation is not the panacea to non performance.
For example, when we dollarized, a lot of parastatals and quasiGovernment institutions simply converted their Zimbabwe Dollar (Z$) figures into current salaries and we have been watching year by year, they are doing that. I do not believe that from a management point of view, we have got to wait for legislation before we intervene I believe that we could have intervened. There were several activities, maybe not necessarily from parastatal but from quasiGovernment institutions to reduce salaries. I am aware that certain of them were told to back off while the country continues to bleed. I am not happy.
I want to know Hon. Minister what you will do to make sure that a corporate governance unit is more acceptable than the Comptroller and Auditor’s report. I do not believe that because it is housed in the
President’s Office, it will necessarily supersede the authority of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development which is derived from the President. So in my opinion, I echo the opinion that we appear to be increasing manpower whereas we have got the institution. I mean the Comptroller and AuditorGeneral, I must give it to her, produces beautiful reports that generally we do not debate in the House and that Government tends to ignore. What assurance do we have that this new animal, the corporate governance unit will perform better.
Madam President, I implore the Minister, we have just heard that a number of Chairpersons were from the ministries and some of them are still sitting permanent secretaries. It is my belief that part of their duties is to supervise entities that fall under their ministries – correct me Minister if I am wrong. They have not done it; I think they need a whip for them to do it. I believe the state, in which Zimbabwe is in today; ministers should roll up their sleeves, put on tackies and get on the job or at least ask their chief executive officers who are the permanent secretaries to fulfill that role. If we do not, Minister, I am afraid that with the best of legislation, we go nowhere. The point where I will agree with you is performance contract.
It is unfashionable today to be locking people into contracts of employment without periods of review. I actually believe that the best and the more senior heads of parastatals should have one year contract, if you do not perform, you are history. For us to be able to do that, all the structures in Government must stop some of the double dipping because we do not want excuses. We have heard that some people get their fair share from the Ministry and when they go around parastatals, they extract. If that is fact, then how do you discipline the head of the parastatal when you have your own omissions?
I agree with you, we need to do the best possible to prevent conflict of interest. However, it is the whole cultural scenario in Zimbabwe that should change. Why am I saying so? Because people craft ways of ensuring that their conflict of interest is hidden unless the ethics change and I do not know how to change. I have got my own primitive method which I cannot talk about here. I am not sure that we are still capable of changing that ethic in Zimbabwe. It applies to most of us; we have got to undergo a serious paradigm shift, a serious ethical shift for us to achieve that result that we desire.
My last comment which I make regularly is; we have only one Zimbabwe, I do not know whether anyone of us here has got a second one, I have one. Those who are used to me know that I guard very jealously against any negative issues in this country. Therefore, I plead with all of us to have a positive revolution from an ethical and a cultural perspective. Madam President, I thank you.
HON. SEN. TIMVEOS: Thank you Madam President for giving
me this opportunity to contribute to the Bill that the Hon. Minister has brought to this Senate. I want to mention that this is a very important Bill. I have not had time to really go through it, I am happy it is in the pigeon holes and I will go through it. I just want to touch on some of the issues that the Hon. Minister has mentioned.
Madam President, parastatals in Zimbabwe have been known to be very corrupt and very dubious. I am hoping that this Bill is really going to look at a lot of issues. Can you imagine that these parastatals actually went for over 8 years without being audited? So, Hon. Minister, Madam President, this really needs to be looked at. Parastatals are actually meant to guard or to actually preserve and to make sure that Government actually gets money to operate. If parastatals are just left to do as they please, then we have a problem. If you look at almost all the parastatals, ZIMRA, ZINARA, NRZ, ZESA, NSSA, all these parastatals have been making headlines and I am hoping that the salaries of these managers – I remember last year or two years now, Cuthbert Dube, getting himself a salary of US$535 000 a month. Surely, how many countries did he visit, how many houses does he have when others cannot even get a job? If we multiply that money, can you imagine what Government could have done with that resource?
I am hoping that this Bill, when a boss is caught paying themselves huge sums of money, surely there has to be a way that they return it. Cuthbert Dube was fired and he just went home and stayed in his different houses until today, he changes houses and say I want to go to Kwekwe and so on. Why not actually sell these things so that we can get the money back so that it can actually be used to actually help Government – [HON. SENATORS: Hear, hear.] – Surely, even if you are educated, you do not deserve such. I also want to mention the boards. I am hoping that this Bill is going to actually may be stipulate or actually look at the board members how they are chosen because some, I know the Ministers also have an input. A minister can put his wife, girlfriend, and cousin, what exactly is making parastatals not work? Are these people that are appointed board members qualified to do so? This is why in the Constitution, the people of Zimbabwe insisted that boards must be independent, they must not be controlled by the Minister, this is what happens when they are controlled by an individual – [AN HON.
SENATOR: Taura hako.]
Boards are not for window dressing, board members should be of a high standard. Board members should know exactly what they are doing because what they are handling is Government funds. Madam President, a lot of boards in this country were actually used to siphon money out of this country and a lot of offshore accounts were created by over two hundred business people, some of them, I will not mention.
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I am glad you are not mentioning because you cannot mention anyone who cannot be able to come and defend themselves in the Senate.
HON. SEN. TIMVEOS: I thank you. Madam President, when I debate I do research and I took an oath, I do not open my mouth if I do not research. I want the Minister who has brought such a very critical Bill to look at these things and I hope His Excellency the current President is looking at this Bill realizes that the erstwhile President was never bothered with these parastatals and they did exactly what they wanted which killed this economy. Madam President, the building of Zimbabwe requires competent and committed people who have the nation at heart and not criminals who are out to strip the nation of hard earned resources. I am going to mention Cuthbert Dube because my heart bleeds. We have all these medical insurances – people go to hospitals and they do not get the service that they deserve but this man is paying himself. Hon. Minister, I hope this Bill is going to help build this nation. I thank you Madam President.
*HON. SEN. MAKORE: Thank you Madam President for giving
me this opportunity to debate on this Bill. I would like to thank the Minister for coming with this Corporate Governance Bill for 2017. The issue of building this country is a very important issue. When we talk of parastatals, we talk about business facets which should be run as businesses so that we raise resources for the country. For a long time, we see the Auditor General’s Report. This report gives us pointers that show that here there is money which is being siphoned; here, infrastructure is not up to date and so forth. Reports that are being given are different from what is obtaining. I hope that this Bill will address all the irrationalities that are being raised.
*THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I would like to
advise Hon. Senators that our interpreting machines are malfunctioning at the moment. I kindly request that you speak in English.
HON. SEN. MAKORE: Thank you Madam President. I will do
so but normally, I enjoy speaking in vernacular. First of all, I would like to thank you for giving me this opportunity to sort of add a few words to this Bill which is in front of us. I would also want to thank the Minister for bringing this Bill of Corporate Governance before this august House.
My observation through all the auditors’ report is that generally, they were a number of irregularities and monopolies that were presented in this particular report. I support this Bill because it will bring sanity to the management system of corporate governance. Secondly, according to the wording here, it says that there were monopolies and gross irregularities which need to be corrected. I do believe that the board has come at a most opportune time to sort of correct these gross irregularities. I want to agree with the Minister that they have to employ new mechanisms because I believe that the purpose of parastatals is to operate as businesses that raise revenues but of course, it was mentioned before me that there was rampant corruption in these parastals. I believe that we experienced some big losses in these parastatals. Perhaps it also speaks to the way these people were recruited. In other words, if some other persons are given positions of authority, they will exercise that particular authority in a very wrong way – where you will recruit very incompetent people based on your relationship that exist. This has killed the systems so tremendously.
I believe the supervision of those parastatals – I do not want to lay fault on any individual but it became a system that there was loose supervision where those parastatals were doing their management in a willynilly nature of very bad production of expected results.
Lastly, on declaration of assets, it is important. It was mentioned here that some people do not go for a purpose of developing that particular institution but to amass a lot of riches for themselves and give themselves huge salaries to the detriment of that parastatal. I believe the declaration of assets as a pointer here to be taken very seriously by the board itself and also the remuneration must be pegged. It must be supervised and given stages that this is how far high we can go in which ever position.
I want to say that quite a number of things were mentioned – it is unfortunate. With these few contributions I have made, I want to thank you Madam President.
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF SENATE: May I please appeal to
the Hon. Senators that our Standing Rules and Orders encourage us not to repeat what has already been said. When we are going to contribute, let us make sure that we are bringing in new information that will help the Minister when he responds.
HON. SEN. SHOKO: Thank you very much for allowing me to
contribute to this very important Bill.
I worked in a parastatal for about forty years and when we talk about these things, I understand the problems that are there in these parastatals. I am not talking from a book or newspaper experience. We need the Minister to look at the issue of having another parastatal in the President’s office. That issue must be looked at seriously. I think that the issue of the AuditorGeneral looking at these people that are going to apply is very important. We need an independent board or entity that is going to look at these people because if we are not very careful, we are going to go back again to our political parties where people that are going to go into these boards are going to be political animals. Let us try to avoid that. We can avoid it through the Auditor General because we have realised that we have got one of the best audit section or department in the country. When we think that the Minister must look at that instead of establishing another parastatal in the President’s office that is very important. If you establish that there, we are still going to have a problem when you are trying to appoint management.
I worked at the National Railways of Zimbabwe (NRZ). I started working there when I was 20 years and I retired there. You would find that when you want to appoint the General Manager of the NRZ, it would take five years because the people that are appointing are looking at a person who is compliant. In this country when you are said to be compliant, it is because you have got a particular political party’s card.
If you do not have that card, you are not compliant.
My name was submitted to a parastatal as one of the board members. I was told that the President’s Office had rejected my name because I was not compliant, and I am a security risk. I could not understand why I am a security risk because I am a Zimbabwean. My being a security risk is because I belong to another political party which was not the party that the President’s Office thought I should belong to.
So, I am simply saying…
HON. SEN. CHIPANGA: On a point of order, Madam President. Madam President, I rise to point out that the Hon. Member is talking about himself and not about the Bill. We are not talking about individuals here. If he wants us to talk about why he was rejected, that is another motion. I thank you.
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: Thank you Hon.
Chipanga.
HON. SEN. SHOKO: Thank you Madam President. I know where he is coming from, do not worry. We have our lines of communication – [Laughter.]
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: Order Hon.
Shoko. Let us not go there please.
HON. SEN. SHOKO: Thank you Madam President for your
direction. I was still contributing on this issue and I am simply saying look, the companies that we are talking about are companies that are very pivotal in our development. The National Railways of Zimbabwe and all the companies that we are talking about that we are saying are going to remain from the ones we are going to get rid of, are very important for the development of our country and we need to have these companies manned by competent people. Those people must be looked at with an eye that understands where we are going.
I realise the Minister has said, we will have boards that are going to declare their assets. I support that very much. They must declare their assets because some of these board members, when they get to these companies start demanding. They either want to be there for the whole month because a board is not supposed to be there for all the time. They have entities and when I heard the Minister talking, he said they must have three meetings in a year and in any way they certainly will be allowed to have emergency meetings because those are allowed.
Board members have to have what you have just stated saying if they are going to get allowances, those allowances are known because when they get in there, they sometimes change everything and pay themselves exorbitant salaries, exorbitant allowances or exorbitant other issues that they would want to have.
I remember in the NRZ, we had a board member who wanted to act like the Chief Executive and we had problems because of that, where he wanted now to be operating every day. So, Minister, we think if you really look at that Act or proposal that you have just put on the table, it would be very important that you look at the areas that we have just talked about where these things are looked at by independent bodies and also the people becoming independent.
The issue of the Permanent Secretaries coming into the boards when a Permanent Secretary comes into the board and you are debating issues, the permanent secretary will tell the board look, the Minister has said this. So, it is very important that Permanent Secretaries should not be included in the boards because they stifle debate when they now say if the Minister wants this. That is also very important that if you want a board that is going to be operational, that is going to be effective, we have to avoid bringing in the Permanent Secretary as one of the board members. Certainly, we do not need a Permanent Secretary who will be the board itself. That will not be a very good situation because it will not help us.
Madam President, if you look at the King Report and the Young Report, some of these things that we are talking about are there where you have to separate the powers, where the board is able to help the Executive to run the company. Madam President, it would be very important for me to state that if the Act is adopted as it is or the things that have been put by the Minister are adopted as they are, we will have a problem in the areas that I have just talked about. I think the Minister must look at that carefully and reconsider the inputs that we have just put forward. I thank you Madam President.
HON. SEN. KHUMALO: Most of what I wanted to say really has been said. I will just give a few points. I am requesting that when the boards are created, we need standard salaries. The salaries should t be pegged so that people in the parastatals do not give themselves salaries which are unreasonable. The Government must come up with a set standard of salaries.
The parastatals themselves must have targets that, we are aiming at having so much by the end of the year. If they are not doing that, why keep the same Chief Executive Officer for two years? That CEO must be dismissed because he is not able. The parastatal is there to make money. If it is not creating funds, why is it being kept?
Finally, I would say the aim of having parastatals if we look at what happened internationally during the high inflation of 2007 to 2009; parastatals were used to rescue the country. The function of our parastatal is being rescued can we have parastatals that can rescue the country?
Somebody talked about entitlement. Senators are not coming to Parliament every time yet we are being paid. Are we not getting the entitlement whereby we are just given money when we are at home and not in Parliament? We are doing the same. Can we come and do our job and be paid. We said we want to be Senators. We did not say we want to be paid when we are at home. That is part of entitlement. We are blaming others when we are having entitlement. We should not have entitlement. Thank you Madam President.
THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. MUKUPE): Thank you Madam President.
Before I start making my responses, I think that there are just two points which I just want to bring to the attention of Senators. I am actually surprised that women did not ululate to the fact that there is going to be an equal representation of men and women on all the boards. I thought for those who are for women empowerment will be happy with that.
So, if you look at Clause 11, it actually says that there will have to be an equal number of men and women on all the boards and in terms of Zimbabwe’s regions, there should also be equal representation. So, I think that is a step in the right direction [Ululation]
I will start with Hon. Sen. Mashavakure. Firstly, he was stating that the Corporate Governance Unit in the Office of the President and Cabinet, in essence we are just increasing by head count and that do we need any more of these parastatals. I think what I need to point out is that there are corporate governance unities already in existence. I think if you look at the enabling legislation that resulted in this Bill being put in place, there is a law that relates to the Civil Service and the Civil Service sits as a department in the OPC. So, this is just an extension of an existing law.
I think he also pointed out the issue of qualifications of board members and he had a particular issue that there are these databases and who is supposed to come up with the databases. I think if you look at Clause 11, it actually says that the Corporate Governance Unit is the one which will maintain the databases and the databases actually come from the line ministries and there is nothing in the Bill that stops you as a private citizen to also make sure that if you have a person or a curriculum vitae that you want to be part of the database to be submitted; you are free to be able to take whatever names that you want to be in the database and you can actually submit them.
Then, there was an issue where he also said in terms of stricter oversight that Permanent Secretaries should not chair boards and that you should not have single chair boards, let me draw to your attention that any person who is in full employment of the State would be eligible to be appointed to the board and Permanent Secretaries are excluded from these. So, Permanent Secretaries are no longer going to be allowed to be appointed to the boards. So, that takes care of your concern.
Then Hon. Sen. Nyambuya, you stated the issue of having the new Constitution being in place over the last five years and that you are really thrilled that we finally have this Bill. It is something that was long overdue. I am happy that you are seeing things in the same way as the new dispensation. You also went on to say that the boards do not have to become a burden on the SOEs, especially the issues of interference by chairs. I think that these are some of the things that this Bill is trying to also address. There are so many cases where chairpersons had decided taking on executive positions and in essence becoming defacto executive chairs. When you go through the Bill, it is actually putting in safeguards around all those things where you hear of chairs giving executive orders and this is going to be a thing of the past in as far as this Bill is concerned.
You also spoke about the culture of entitlement and this is a key thing if you look at the Bill. It talks about that. They had become a culture of entitlement and issues of those that are on boards had actually found that it had become a career to be on boards and, it should be one of service as opposed to an issue of going on to these boards with a view that you are going to be entitled to all sorts of monitory benefits.
Hon. Sen. Marava, you spoke of loss making entities where there is a need to take action and I would want to draw your attention that this is exactly the reason why you have the State Enterprises Restructuring
Agents. That is what they do on a daily basis to make sure that all these State entities are actually delivering if they are commercial entities. I would also want to clarify that when I listened to most of the Senators speaking, I am getting the feeling that the Senators are believing that this Bill is just targeting commercial parastatals. What I would want to bring to your attention is that this Bill is actually targeting three types of entities. There are regulatory entities, there are commercial parastatals and there are noncommercial parastatals. So, I just wanted to make it clear that it is not targeting just the commercial parastatals.
Hon. Sen. Sibanda, you spoke about the five years to react to losses. I do not know where that is coming from. I would want to believe that you were talking about privatisation and what I want to bring to the attention of the Hon. Senator is, I see that sometimes Members get confused about the definition of the term ‘privatisation’ from a commercial perspective, what it means. Most of these commercial enterprises were privatised a long time ago. That is when we used to have the Privatisation Agency of Zimbabwe which has since been succeeded by an entity called the State Enterprises Restructuring Agency (SERA). So, what you are now talking about is for example, if we have a loss making commercial entity, you need to restructure its operations and management. It is no longer an issue of really privatising most of these entities. So, we have to be careful when we are using that term.
I agree with him that there is the issue of some of the debt assumption issues which are as a result of some of these governance issues and this is exactly what this Bill is trying to make sure that we do not have any more further losses or a burden on the fiscus as a result of governance related issues.
He also spoke of management intervention being necessary and not waiting for legislation. I agree with you, also making sure that the CGU is more acceptable than that of the Auditor General. I do not know where that is coming from because I would want to believe that the last time when Madam Chiri was being asked to be promoted to another position, there was an outcry and I believe from both Chambers. This is actually an acknowledgement that the Auditor General’s Office is doing its job and it is being celebrated. So, when you are saying it has to become more acceptable, I do not know maybe it is the English that I do not understand what you mean by ‘more acceptable’ – [HON. SEN. B.
SIBANDA: You did not get me right.] –
Can you protect me Madam President? I am just repeating the statement that was said and Hon. Sen. Sibanda also said that the Permanent Secretaries need a whip. I would want to believe that like there is the issue of performance targets, that is what this document is talking about. It is talking about strategic plans – that you have to submit and you have to be held accountable to the strategic plans. So, I believe that is the whip that probably he is also talking about.
He spoke about performance contracts and saying that he would want to see probably a situation where you have one year performance contracts. We would want to believe that if you are prescriptive to such an extent, it could actually be dangerous because if you are going to give someone a one year performance contract then their thinking and mindset is going to be of a shortterm nature and that could have disastrous consequences, but at the same time, if you also have very long performance contracts then you will also have some of the senior executives becoming relaxed. I think the answer is somewhere in between the two. I love the fact that he spoke about one Zimbabwe and us pulling together and basically supporting and making sure that the Government of the day functions well. I thank you for that.
Hon. Sen. Timveos, she says that parastatals are known to be very corrupt and dubious. I think that is a personal opinion and I would want to believe probably that comes from the constituency that she is representing. I would not make such a general statement in generalizing that all parastatals are corrupt and dubious. I would want to believe that there are some wellmeaning civil servants there and people in some of these senior positions who want to make a better Zimbabwe and who actually wake up every day to make sure that the parastatals that they are working for function. So to paint everyone with that brush, I think is a bit too much.
I think she stated that there were some parastatals that had gone for eight years without audits. I would want to believe that is now a thing of the past and if anything, Madame Chiri has done a fantastic and brilliant job where almost every parastatal is up to date in terms of audits. I do not think that we have such a situation anymore. I think the last time we had such a situation was probably about three years or so back when we had audits that were really outstanding. So I think that she has to be applauded for a fantastic job.
There was the mention of Cuthbert Dube and everything around the entity. All I can say is that this is exactly what the Bill seeks to do because I would want to believe that when you look at that case. It was a situation where the board had approved the salary. So as far as I am concerned, to say Cuthbert Dube is a criminal – I do not know where that is coming from because if the board had approved, it means that he is not a criminal. The issue that is there is that the Bill is saying that we have put in the measures that make sure that we end up making the same mistakes where boards pass ridiculous salaries and benefits. I think that is the thrust of the Bill.
Hon. Sen. Makore, the whole thrust of your speech was that parastatals should operate as businesses. Again, I would want to caution you that there are three types of public entities – there is the regulatory public entity, there are commercial and noncommercial entities. I think what you were probably alluding to were the entities that are within the commercial space. I take note and accept almost that you said that we need to correct any gross irregularities and any semblance of monopolies, we have to make sure that we deal with those.
Then the system of what you referred to as a ‘let lose system’. Yes, I think that is exactly what the Bill is alluding to in terms of making sure that you have strategic plans, performance contracts and you are measured against these so that it does not become a let loose system.
Hon. Sen. Shoko, yes, we thank you for the 40 years that you gave to the Government of Zimbabwe. I am sure bearing the political statements, there is a lot that some of us young ones can learn from your 40 years of service. I will not go into comments that you made on personal issues but will state that I like the fact that you support issues like there should be declaration of assets which is in the Bill. You also pointed out issues of making sure that the allowances and salaries are known. So I would want to draw you to Clause 12 which states that, “the Minister responsible for this Bill will be able to formulate standard sitting allowances, provisions for out of pocket expenses and other payments or benefits compatible with service as a nonexecutive board member.’ So it is there in the Bill, they will take care of your concerns.
Hon. Sen. Khumalo wants nonperforming chief executive officers (CEOs) fired – that is there in the Bill, if you are not performing, naturally you should be relieved of your position. I think it is also key what you spoke about the issue of the aim of parastatals that they were used to rescue the country. There is always the issue of we have been under sanctions at times and had to come up with sanction busting measures and some parastatals are used for that at times. So I agree with what you are saying, that is why you find that at times, certain parastatals may not make commercial sense that is why they are put into the noncommercial category. So that is why I wanted to caution Hon. Senators that not all parastatals are commercial parastatals.
You also spoke about issues around entitlement, which point I have already addressed. I thank you Madam President. – [HON. SENATORS: Hear, hear.] I now move that the Bill be now read a second time.
Motion put and agreed to.
Bill read a second time.
Committee Stage: Wednesday, 14th March, 2018.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. MAZIWISA: May I request that we withdraw Order of the
Day, Number 5, on today’s Order Paper, because according to Section 6 of the Presidential Powers, Temporary Measures Act, Statutory Instruments expire after 180 days and the 180 days in respect of this particular Statutory Instrument expire tomorrow.
Motion put and agreed to.
COMMITTEE STAGE
CONSIDERATION OF AN ADVERSE REPORT BY THE
PARLIAMENTARY LEGAL COMMITTEE ON STATUTORY
INSTRUMENT NO. 79 OF 2017AGRICULTURAL
MARKETING AUTHORITY (COMMAND AGRICULTURE
SCHEME FOR DOMESTIC CROP, LIVESTOCK AND
FISHERIES PRODUCTION) REGULATIONS, 2017
Sixth Order read: Committee Stage: Consideration of an Adverse
Report by the Parliamentary Legal Committee on Statutory Instrument
No. 79 of 2017 – Agricultural Marketing Authority (Command
Agriculture Scheme for domestic Crop, Livestock and Fisheries
Production) Regulations, 2017.
House in Committee
HON. MAZIWISA: This is an adverse report of the Parliamentary
Legal Committee on the Agricultural Marketing Authority (Command
Agriculture Scheme for Domestic Crop, Livestock and Fisheries
Production) Regulations, 2017.
In pursuit of its constitutional mandate as provided in Section 152
(2) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, the Parliamentary Legal
Committee (herein referred to as “the Committee) considered the
Agricultural Marketing Authority (Command Agriculture Scheme for
Domestic Crop, Livestock and Fisheries Production) Regulations, 2017. After deliberations, the Committee unanimously resolved that an adverse report be issued in respect of the Statutory Instrument, due to the following reasons.
Command Agriculture is a Government scheme which provides access of inputs by the farmers. The Government scheme is governed by a civil contract between the Government and the farmer, just like any civil contracts regulated by the law of contract, thus there is no need to create a criminal offence under a statute where it is already provided for in terms of a contract. The Statutory Instrument 79 of 2017 seeks to protect the scheme through criminalising the misappropriation of agricultural inputs and contract produce through criminal punishment. This not only contravenes Section 49(2) of the Constitution which provides that “no person may be imprisoned on the grounds of inability to fulfill a contractual obligation”; it is the Committee’s view that this violates Clause 11 of the contract which provides that variation of the terms and conditions of the contract shall be in writing and agreed to by both parties. It does not mention a Statutory Instrument having the authority to vary the contract or any other law.
A contract constitutes a promise for which the law gives a remedy in case of breach. Formation requires mutual assent and consideration. Courts use an objective test. It does not matter what the parties subjectively believed during the contract’s formation, as long as they manifested the appropriate intent. A breach occurs when one party does not perform under the contract. This is a strict liability standard. If a party contravenes the terms of the contract, the party is in breach, regardless of the party’s motivations or state of mind. Crimes stand apart from contracts. The state can prosecute these acts and seek sanctions including imprisonment. A crime typically requires a wrongful deed or act, an actus reus, combined with a guilty state of mind, a mens rea. The defendant does not need to be successful in completing the prohibited act. As long as the person intended to cause the harm takes some affirmative action, this person can be punished. Crimes receive criminal punishment, but contract breaches only receive civil liability.
At law, the only remedy available to an aggrieved party is to approach the civil court and institute civil proceedings, thus any breach of material terms of a civil contract attracts civil remedies such as specific performance, rescission and payment of damages and not criminal punishment. The common phrase used here is that “criminal law punishes while civil law prices.” The aggrieved party cannot seek recourse from the criminal court because the cause of action emanates from a purely civil contract and thus attracts civil remedies not punishment. Criminalization of breach of contract is not an option whereas the strengthening of debt recovery laws governing loans (in whatever form) in cases of breach or default in repayment of loans is the solution.The mischief that Statutory Instrument 79 of 2017 seeks to remedy can be included under breach of contract under Clause 8 of the contract between the Government and the farmer. Thus any breach thereof will be dealt with under the civil law since the breach of contract between the Government and the farmer is like any other civil contracts regulated by law of contract.
Furthermore, Section 113 of the Criminal Law (Codification and
Reform) ActChapter 9:23 provides that:
“(1) Any person who takes property capable of being stolen
- knowing that another person is entitled to own, possess or control the property or realising that there is a real risk or possibility
that another person may be so entitled; and
- intending to deprive the other person permanently of his or her ownership, possession or control, or realising that there is a real risk or possibility that he or she may so deprive the other person of his or her ownership, possession or control;”.
Conclusively, Statutory Instrument 79 of 2017 undermines a constitutionally entrenched right that is founded on fairness and justice to all.The Statutory Instrument goes against the founding principle of good governance, which binds not only the Ministry of Agriculture but all agencies of State, being the principle of transparency, justice, accountability and responsiveness, iterated in Section 3 (2) (g) of the Constitution. Accordingly, the Committee unanimously resolved to issue an adverse report on the Statutory Instrument. I thank you.
HON. SEN. B. SIBANDA: I congratulate the Parliamentary Legal Committee. You have shown a learned opinion which protects the ordinary person who would not have otherwise understood the implications and legal side of the agreement in which they got into and would therefore be adversely protected by the new regulations. I thank you.
HON. SEN. MASHAVAKURE: I think I need something to be
clarified because in its presentation to this House, the Committee persistently talks about misappropriation. To the ordinary mind, misappropriation is next to mischief but they site for instance, Section 49 of the Constitution and relate the misappropriation to contractual obligation or something along those lines.
I think that once you talk about misappropriation, you are probably talking of some kind of an offence being committed. If somebody deliberately misappropriated inputs that were meant for this Command
Agriculture – well at least the ordinary person like myself, there must be some small crime being committed there. It could be theft by conversion but our learned friends saw it legally prudent to say that the statutory instrument cannot criminally penalise those who misappropriate items associated with Command Agriculture because of whatever reasons.
Again, the other suggestion seems to be that maybe these people who convert what is meant for Command Agriculture to their own personal use probably did not know. I think that I heard from some other legal gurus that ignorance is no defence. Whatever they do, whether they know it or not, they are probably committing a crime and it should be up for some other forums for these people to defend themselves by putting evidence to show that they were not committing a crime.
How does the Committee arrive at the conclusion that this is a civil matter and not a criminal matter when it can possibly be a case of theft by conversion? I thank you Mr. Chairman.
HON. SEN. CHIMHINI: I think the Adverse Report is a welcome gesture and I fully support it.
Here, we are looking at commission of an offence. I think it is clear in the report that there are ways of coming up with a penalty. The report is not absolving any act or commission or omission. It is simply indicating that there are other means to get a redress. I think this is what the adverse report is all about. Let us not criminalise and use criminal penalties when we can use civil remedies. I think this is a milestone in terms of looking at issues separately this is not criminal, this is civil because people will take advantage where they would want to put everything under criminal law when it is not. I think this adverse report is appropriate. I thank you Mr. Chairman.
HON. SEN. SHOKO: Thank you Mr. Chairman. I was listening attentively when the presenter, Hon. Maziwisa, was talking about this Statutory Instrument. I agree certainly with the Committee when they said look, there are two people here that have made an agreement you give me your cow and say you can take it for a while for milk and then you take the calves for your own use. You will see certainly, that must be a civil issue. It cannot be called criminal and I think the Committee did a very good job because otherwise, we were going to have all the farmers in jail having failed to carry out what they had agreed on. So, I must congratulate the Committee for the good work and we thank them for redirecting the issue for the Senate to look at. I thank you, Mr.
Chairman.
THE ACTING CHAIRPERSON OF THE
PARLIAMENTARY LEGAL COMMITTEE (HON. MAZIWISA):
I want to thank the Hon. Senators for their respective contributions. I think the bulk of them were in agreement with our opinion as the Legal Committee. What that does is that it gives us enormous confidence that we seem to know what we are doing. So, I thank you very much indeed for that.
I think the Hon. Senator Mashavakure has been very capably responded to by his fellow Hon. Senator there. When we consider that something must not be criminalised, we are not saying that if there is any breach of contract, the person who is in breach of the contract should just walk scot free. The argument is simply that there is a civil route that must be followed and I think that this is the argument that we have been making in this report, which is that there is a whole host of remedies that are available to the aggrieved party which in this case would be the Government. These include recession of the contract, specific performance and even in some cases when they approach a court, they may even request that the person refunds the equivalent amount of whatever inputs were given to him.
So, it is important that we stick to that approach because the Constitution is very clear and the Constitution says that it is the supreme law of the land. There is no way, as legal experts, that we were going to act in a manner or to give an opinion that is contrary to what the
Constitution is directing us to do in section 49 (2). It is very clear that where two parties enter into an agreement, the recourse must eventually be a civil one and we tried as much as possible to stick to that. So, I thank you very much. I seek leave that the Chairperson reports progress and seek leave to sit again.
Motion put and agreed to.
Senate resumed.
Progress reported.
Committee to resume: Wednesday, 14th March, 2018.
MOTION
PROVISION OF ALTERNATIVE RESETTLEMENT AREAS FOR ZVEHAMBA, MAHATSHE AND MATANKENI COMMUNITIES.
Seventh Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the call on the Executive to provide alternative resettlement areas for communities from Zvehamba, Mahatshe and Matankeni.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MARAVA: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MASHAVAKURE: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 14th March, 2018.
MOTION
PROTECTION OF CONSUMERS FROM UNSCRUPULOUS
BUSINESS PEOPLE
Eight Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on protection of consumers from corruption.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MAWIRE: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MARAVA: I second.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 14th March, 2018.
MOTION
FIRST REPORT OF THE THEMATIC COMMITTEE ON
INDIGENISATION AND EMPOWERMENT ON THE
CIRCUMSTANCES SURROUNDING THE NONESTABLISHMENT
OF THE COMMUNITY SHARE OWNERSHIP TRUSTS
Ninth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the First Report of the Thematic Committee on Indigenisation and Empowerment on the circumstances surrounding the nonestablishment of Community Share
Ownership Trusts in Mudzi and Mutoko districts.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. TAWENGWA: Mr. President, I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 14th March, 2018.
On the motion of HON. SEN. TAWENGWA, seconded by HON. SEN. MOHADI, the Senate adjourned at TwentySeven Minutes to Five o’clock p.m.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Tuesday, 20th March, 2018
The Senate met at Halfpast Two o’clock p. m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE
SENATE
INVITATION TO A CATHOLIC CHURCH SERVICE
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I wish to inform
the Senate that there will be a Roman Catholic Church Service tomorrow, Wednesday, 21st March, 2018 at 1200 hours in the Senate
Chamber. All catholic and noncatholic members are invited.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. SEN. TAWENGWA: Madam President, I move that Order
of the Day Number 1 be stood over until the rest of the Orders of the
Day have been disposed of.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
ICT LITERACY PROGRAMME
HON. MAVHUNGA: I move the motion standing in my name
that this House;
ACKNOWLEDGING the preamble of the Constitution of Zimbabwe which among others recognises the need to overcome all challenges and obstacles that impede our progress;
COGNISANT of the fact that the Information Communication Technology (ICT) is becoming an important catalyst for socioeconomic development in the global economy;
NOTING the urgent need to address the ICT divide between the rural and urban and the young and the old people in our country;
ALSO NOTING that ICT illiteracy among some sections of our community is hindering economic progress and achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) whose theme is “leave no one behind”;
APPLAUDING Government initiatives to setting up community information centers throughout the country and prioritising ICT literacy from the Early Childhood Development (ECD) level;
NOW, THEREFORE, calls upon the Ministry of Information,
Communication Technology and Cyber Security to
- prioritise installation of the fiber optic infrastructure in all
rural areas;
- roll out an ICT literacy programme targeting the middle aged and rural populace in order to overcome challenges and obstacles that hinder progress;
- take appropriate measures to ensure internet services are easily accessible and affordable
- expedite the Cyber Crime Bill in order to protect citizens from online abuses.
HON. SEN. MUGABE: I second.
HON. SEN. MAVHUNGA: I am sure everyone will agree with me that knowledge is power. If you want to be successful, you need to have knowledge. In the Holy Book, the Bible itself in Hosea Chapter
Four Verse 6 it says, “my people perish because of lack of knowledge”. Madam President, without knowledge, you are doomed, you have no exposure to know what is happening in the country, region and globe at large. Knowledge of information, communication and technology is therefore required in order for us, as set out in the preamble of the Constitution, to overcome challenges and obstacles that impede our progress. For the development of our nation, we need to overcome such challenges.
Madam President, I am mindful of the fact that ICT is the modern means of communication globally. It is through ICT that we now have mobile phones and can communicate with anyone instantly around the globe, able to communicate on social media, able to search information on different search engines such as google, search news online, listen to radio and hear what is happening globally, watch television and see what is happening globally, and so on.
Madam President, ICT era has made communication easy, reliable, timeous and user friendly. Did I say user friendly, Madam President? Pardon me, if I were to ask in this august House, how many of us here are computer literate – [HON. SENATORS: Inaudible interjections.] – I am talking of basics like googling for news updates or certain issues, communicating via email, skype, facebook, twitter or instagram. It is so embarrassing when you hear the young and the literate talk about things like youtube or twitter, when you do not know how to even get to youtube or twitter yet you have the gadget that enables that to happen.
We do not have the capacity to google because we have not been capacitated. Most of us in this House have expensive smart phones, our children have bought us these phones but we only know how to answer the phone and make outgoing calls. With WhatsApp now, a number of us can communicate via WhatsApp, but to tell the truth, the smart phones that we own can do amazing things if we only have full knowledge of how these handsets operate. We are Parliamentarians. When we went to school, this innovation was not there. We need to be capacitated in using these gadgets that we are under utilising. Madam President, as I have alluded to, knowledge is power. The global world is now ICT compliant. Everything is done online. For example, to apply for a Form 1 place, university admission, job vacancies, visa application and so on. It is now done on line.
Madam President, I have noted that there is an ICT divide between the rural and urban population as well as the young and the middle to old age. This huge gap needs to be addressed. Zimbabwe like other United Nations (UN) states, has adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) whose theme is, “leave no one behind.” This ICT divide between the young and the middle to old age, and urban and rural populace is surely leaving someone behind.
In order to achieve the SDGs, which we hope to achieve through the 2030 agenda, the rural populace needs to be incorporated because as it stands, it is completely cut from the outside world. They have no access to vital information which they require for their day to day living due to lack of gadgets and infrastructure that supports ICT tools such as the internet which is an important tool for today’s world.
I was saddened when one school leaver was referred to me for assistance. This boy had passed his A level with 11 points in the rural areas. He could not afford university and when I asked him what he wanted to do, he said teaching or joining ZRP or the Army. Those are the only three professions that he was aware of. I later cursed mysef for asking him to go on the internet and seek for opportunities for both tertiary learning and jobs. He said that he did not know anything about computers, and had no idea of how emailing works like. This is an A level school leaver I am talking about. In as much as we can say ICT is easy and user friendly, the rural folk remain marginalised in terms of ICT.
Madam President, the global economy now uses ecommerce. Our
Constitution, Section 14 talks of Empowerment and Employment
Creation and it states that; “The State and all institutions and agencies of the Government at every level must endeavour to facilitate and undertake measures to empower through appropriate, transparent, fair and just affirmative action, all marginalised persons, groups and communities in Zimbabwe.”
It further states that; “at all times the State and all institutions and agencies of Government at every level must ensure that appropriate and adequate measures are undertaken to create employment for all
Zimbabweans, especially women and youths.”
Madam President, let me put emphasis on women and youths. Women in rural areas are enterprising. They have products, but do not have the market and have no marketing platforms. Some are into small grain farming, horticulture farming and poultry farming to name a few. If these people are capacitated in ICT, they can market their products on line and embrace ecommerce business. ECommerce is cheaper and less cumbersome as compared to travelling all the way to find markets, of which you can be referred from one point to the next. That in itself is costly and time consuming. Those in need of products can just google and communicate on line with the person with the product whilst at the same time communicating logistics of getting the product.
Madam President, Zimbabwe is a very rich country in terms of minerals. As indicated recently with officials from the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development at the Mining Indaba, Zimbabwe has over 80 different kinds of minerals, and almost all of these minerals are found in rural areas where the majority of miners are small scale. Market for the mining sector is mainly found in Asia, America and Europe. For the miner in very remote areas to get access to these markets, it is difficult due to lack of ICT facilities.
Most of these mine owners end up losing money to the middlemen who will come and buy their minerals at very low prices and thereafter, smuggle the minerals out of the country. This alone affects the country’s fiscus because most of these middlemen do not pay tax to the
Government for exportation. There is need for equipping rural areas with relevant infrastructure suitable for ICT and also roll out capacity building programmes to help educate the rural population on how ICT works.
Madam President, the reason why I am emphasising on the above points is because I have a case study of China. ICT is increasingly wide spreading in rural China and is finding users such as the elderly people, rural women and people with little education or disposable income. These categories of people are engaging in ecommerce and their livelihoods have improved. Besides ecommerce, the ICT use in China is also driven by the desire to find connections and entertainment. Taking a leaf from China, we will empower our rural population to be active participants in the global economy, for example in the mining sector.
Madam President, I do not have the percentage that the rural population contributes to the fiscus but what I know is that it does contribute. According to the World Bank Collection of development indicators compiled from officially recognised sources, rural population was reported at 67.72% in 2016. The majority of this population depends on farming and 45% of the households’ only farm for consumption, while 36% rely on farming for money. Smallholder agriculture sector trading in Zimbabwe is approximately $20 million economy annually. Imagine how much this would be if this population was able to use ICT for ecommerce. ICT as noted in the China case, will not only enhance ecommerce, but it will also provide entertainment.
The other major aspect that the Ministry has to know is that it has a role to ensure that access to ICT tools such as internet is affordable. For example, internet data in some countries such as China is very cheaper compared to Zimbabwe. 1 Gig worth of data in China costs about $0.27, whilst here in Zimbabwe, 1 Gig worth of data cost about $2 (internet data bundles for mobile phones).
Madam President, the Ministry of ICT and Cyber Security in their client’s charter commits to;
“Develop supportive and enabling communications infrastructure to ensure equitable access to ICTs by ALL citizens, including disadvantaged communities and rural communities.”
What worries me Madam President is the fact that I see fibre optic cables linking urban areas and have not seen these being extended to the rural communities. Is the Ministry living up to its commitment? In most rural areas mobile networks are a challenge. One has to go up a mountain or a particular spot in order to get network access. Madam President, as I mentioned before, information is power and people need access to information and the State has an obligation to ensure that this happens in light of the Constitution provision that I quoted earlier.
Furthermore, the Ministry in its charter also commits to;
“Promote the development of ICT products, paying particular attention to the disadvantaged communities and citizens (rural areas, people living with disabilities, women, children and the aged) hence the need for the roll out programme in ICT.”
Madam President, on a positive note I wish to applaud the Government for introducing ICT in schools from a tender age, ECD level. Children will grow up being ICT literate, unlike most of us here and the introduction of the subject is a welcome development. The new curriculum might not be achieved much in rural areas due to lack of various resources ranging from lack of electricity, lack of infrastructure that supports ICT, lack of teachers with knowledge of ICT, lack of the computers, et cetera.
I call upon the relevant Ministries to start considering the rural population in ICT. Madam President, as noted the SDGs theme is, “leave no one behind,” and as a nation if we are to achieve these SDGs, let us ensure that we take the rural population on board in terms of ICT. This is key because it will lead to the achievement of other SDGs to name but just a few:
Goal 1 No poverty. As noted, it will eradicate poverty
through empowerment.
Goal 2 Zero hunger. More disposable income and
empowerment will enable more economic activities.
Goal 4 Quality Education.
Goal 5 Gender Equality.
Madam President, to achieve positive results, there is need to ensure that issues to do with power and energy are dealt with. For an efficient and effective capacity building programmes in rural areas, the Rural Electrification programme needs to be stepped up. Zimbabwe is blessed with solar energy in abundance and I am sure the Government can utilise this God given resource and increase electricity through solar projects such as the one recently commissioned in Mutoko. For one to use an ICT gadget, power is of paramount importance. In rolling out the programme, the Ministry of ICT needs to work closely with the Ministry of Energy and Power Development.
Madam President, in concluding my motion, I therefore call upon the Government through the relevant Ministries to prioritise rural electrification, digitalization and spearhead the ICT infrastructure development such as satellite, fibre, mobile networks and so on in rural areas so that we leave no one behind in this ICT era. Secondly, the Ministry of ICT should roll out an ICT literacy programme targeting the rural communities (from village level) and the middle age to old aged people in order to overcome challenges and obstacles that hinder our progress in economic empowerment. I want to applaud the Women Parliamentary Caucus for the programme where women Parliamentarians are being trained. For those who have not gone through that course, please go and arrange with the Caucus. It is so helpful. It helps you to research so that you can debate with more information.
As mentioned before this will have a direct impact not only on improving livelihoods of the rural populace but also contribute to poverty eradication and the fiscus. A call is made to the Government to take appropriate measures to ensure ICT infrastructure is set up countrywide, internet service is easily accessible and affordable. Madam President, lastly the Government needs to expedite the passing of the Cyber Crime Bill in order to protect citizens from online abuse as they begin using the internet. I thank you Madam President.
HON. SEN. MUGABE: Thank you Madam President. I rise to second Hon. Sen. Mavhunga’s motion on access to ICT by middle to old age and rural population. Yes Madam President, knowledge is power. We are really challenged by this motion; it is well researched, informative and well presented – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – I am one of those people who attended training by the Parliamentary Women’s Caucus. I am able to type on a computer, google and find a lot of information. It is very important that we take up that.
The most valuable resource is a human being. So, this human being must have knowledge and information. A human being must be able to communicate. If we do not communicate, I do not know how we can run this world; we need the communication element. At this juncture Madam President, I hasten to applaud the Government for the launch of the National ICT policy recently by the President, E. D.
Mnangagwa where he expressed support for elearning.
I am seconding this motion because ICT enabler for transforming Zimbabwe into an esociety. Madam President, this motion comes when the world has moved into the information stage. Communication has advanced from physical postal mail, I think we remember that. We remember the postman coming to our doors and sometimes giving us the wrong letters where they would also make human errors because those letters had to be sorted by hand, and sometimes by people who not have even gone to school or who would only have learnt how to count 1 to 10, because the letters had boxnumbers – we remember that, don’t we?
Now, communication has advanced from that physical postal mail to telephone, fax transmissions and digital communication through electronic mail. The private bag of the postman, there was a private bag and postbox. The private bag; I remember when I was in primary school; the private bag was coming to our school, being collected by one of the teachers from the Post Office. He had to travel by bicycle to collect that box and the key was being kept in the office by the Headmaster. The Headmaster would open the letters then read out the letters and the children would then take the letters to their parents.
However, I remember one day getting a hiding from my mother because I had dropped the letter when I was crossing a river. During those days you would cross rivers and as children you would play to cross a river though it was very risky at that time.
Madam President, technology development also leads to changes in work, job, and organisations of work for example when we are planning using the modern ways, it will be very easy. The changes gained means people will have critical thinking even decision making is made easy. Communication also becomes very effective and there will be teamwork.
Madam President, ICT is very important in our lives. It is true that there should be no divide between the young, middle aged and the old, neither should there be between the rural and the urban. Again, our Government is commended for introducing ICT in schools from ECD level. Being ICT literate means empowerment. The mover of the motion clearly stated that no one should be left behind in as far as ICT is concerned because taking the entire population including the vulnerable and those living with disabilities leads to the achievement of the SDG’s.
ICT will keep us informed; using smart phones for emergencies for example when there is fire, we quickly pass on the information. It can
be medical, it can be police we keep in touch with each other through use of the email. In business, instant information is required for customers, for sales profits, production, market research as the mover of the motion has explained. We may also need the employee data and that makes our businesses become successful. It can also reduce inventory physical records because using our records by physical means may affect production.
Business without strong ICT is weak because we are now living in the global village which is computerised. Resources permitting all schools should be computerized. We know there are several schools now in our country which have been computerized but several more need computers. Some schools do not have electricity, so if we can have electricity, we are investing in the human resource and rural information centers for all districts, I think should be a must because in the information centre you can have the training in the use of computers. Actually, you can add even more training. If the old people in our rural areas find somewhere to go, to the information centres, we can even add entertainment there, we can even add games like chase, tsoro, and darts so the old people having these games will be encouraged, they will live longer, and they will have that strong willpower to live longer. If they can throw a dart then even if you are 80 years old, you can feel that you are young person. So, in our information centres, if we add those things I think that will be good.
I think we should breathe ICT, live ICT and no one should be left behind at all. Knowledge is power and the most important resource is the human being who needs this knowledge. I thank you.
HON. SEN. MUMVURI: Can I use the Shona language, is it permissible now?
THE HON. PRESIDENT: Our machines are still not working
HON. SEN. MUMVURI: I wanted to express myself very well in Shona. I stand Madam President to support the motion which was introduced by Hon. Sen. Mavhunga and seconded by Hon. Sen. Mugabe. It is a very important topic and motion for discussion. Gone are the days when we used to have messages being sent in different ways and very slow ones? I remember, if we go backwards, people used drums to communicate and at times they would use horns and smoke from fire. If they burnt fire, they meant something. Those were the old days, but people had their way of communicating and we appreciate that.
We moved on to the writing of messages which Hon. Sen. Mugabe was alluding to, writing letters, fax et cetera posting them and when there is death, we sent somebody by bus from here to Chipinge and when he comes back, that is when we get the arrangements going and sometimes the bus does not deliver the letter and it gets lost. We have gone past that.
The Post Office Box which the Hon. Senator was referring to as well when we were at school, a private box was somebody’s private box which he/she could come and open and take the letters and go away, but the bag was sealed, it was a bag, a real bag, big one and it could be taken to the school and then opened there. Other letters which were to be posted were collected from all the people, put in there and taken by the messenger. The messenger did not open the box but it was opened by the Principal at the school. Again, it was a way of securing our messages to where they were intended and now we have moved fast. These days, we do not have to send somebody with a bereavement message or illness, we just send through WhatsApp or twitter, even to Britain, it gets there within seconds whilst we are talking here. That is great and we must all move with these times.
However, ICT has its own advantages and disadvantages – [HON.
SENATORS: Hear, hear.] – That is my point which I want to say. Recently, Madam President, if you read the newspapers, it was awash with false rumours which were not substantiated by the police until recently when the Chief Inspector or Spokesperson of the police, Inspector Paul Nyathi disputed those rumours that there are no people who are mugging people and or killing children going to or from school.
They were not there but people were awash with these messages. People were posting false rumours and I think that must be curtailed. I do not know how this can be reduced or stopped.
Sometimes you get false rumours from South Africa to say so and so has died, please sent this message home in Muzarabani there, we are looking for relatives. Sometimes it is not verified. Naked pictures sometimes come up from WhatsApp platforms and that is not good. So we must use ICT responsibly, not willynilly as other people want to do in spreading those rumours.
However, there are more advantages of using the ICT, I agree and I want to admit than not using it at all. We must use it, Government must find a way. Apart from what Hon. Sen. Mavhunga and Hon. Sen. Mugabe have advocated that Government must promote this. I think we must promote it selectively. At one time there was uproar on the use of laptops and cellphones in the schools. That debate has not been concluded until now. We do not know whether we want our children to use cellphones at school or not. Dr. Dokora was roasted in here and some people were supporting and he did not give a clear answer, he just said, ‘people need to use it in the exams but how about in the hostels where they are not controlled? We can use them in the classroom, that is fine, but when they are at the hostels on their own, do you think if the children have freewill, they would not go throughout the night browsing and sending messages at the expense of studying. We must curtail that in the schools and use the ICT appropriately in the classroom – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – that is my view.
Then, the other point which I want to emphasise is, I have talked about the development of ancient ways of communication coming to the modern ones and so on. These must be documented clearly so that we do not lose track and sight of them so that our children know that there were other methods which were honourable and noble which were used in the past and they were quite effective so that they know where we started from. We are here and we are going into the future and we must have a base of understanding how methods of communication and carrying messages were developed.
I think it is important that we must not lose sight of what happened in the past and begin with the ICT. Some people do not know that the methods were also very effective and the chiefs still cherish them and want to use them, from time to time.
These days we are paying bride price using point of purchase/or sale machines, to swipe because no cash is being carried. You just go with your mediator and all the people there, you negotiate using words and the money is transferred into the accounts of the inlaws instantly and that is what is happening. In the past we used to carry goats, hoes and so on as bride price. However, I think that must be known by our children. That is the point that I want to make that they should know that where we are, we came from a past which we still cherish to this day, that it was good to do that. It really cemented our relationships amongst the inlaws, father inlaw and sonin law and the daughters, there was something tangible, which we did.
These days, I do not underestimate or devalue what is happening now but I think we must have a past and it must be documented. I think I want to support what was said by Hon. Sen. Mugabe. Hon. Sen.
Mavhunga you did very well in your presentation, it is well researched. I think it provokes everyone of us here to debate on this motion. I want to thank you Madam President.
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: Thank you Hon.
Sen. Mumvuri. I have just been handed a note that the interpretation equipment is now working and you have just finished.
*HON. SEN. CHIMHINI: Thank you Madam President. I am very grateful for the motion which has been introduced by Hon. Sen. Mavhunga. The most important aspect of this motion is that
Government should work diligently to promote the ICT technology so that we talk of first things first. I do agree that ICT is a noble idea but if we adopt it in a rush, we may miss important aspects of life.
When we look at the businesses and you want to open up your business, and you are applying for a premises, you are told to apply through the internet – Let me take a good example of an old man who is in Mahenye rural areas and is supposed to apply through the internet. What this means is, as this old man has no access to internet, he will end up giving up or not honour up the business. As stated by Hon. Sen. Mavhunga, when we talk about the introduction of ICT and all the complications, Government should start by educating the people. Currently, we have been talking about ebanking, and what we mean is, we should start by teaching people how to register through the internet. When the elderly people in those areas have not been given enough education on elearning, there will be no progress, hence it is very essential that people should be taught on email. We have learners who are told to apply for places in other institutions, instead of writing letters of applications, they are told to go through the elearning process. I am saying, you are asking the learners who are in rural areas who do not have access to internet, asking them to apply for a form one place in those areas, how will they do it? Of late, we have people in the banks waiting to do transactions but there is no network. These people have problems in accessing banking services as stated by Hon. Sen.
Mavhunga. We need to work on the internet.
I will take a good example of what was happening here in
Parliament during the BVR registration. People will be trying to register and they have problems. They would get assistance from the IT personnel in Parliament. What this means is we need to lay out our foundations so that when we launch a programme, it can easily be taken up. I am saying, we need to take time in laying the foundation, introducing people to the elearning and internet. Learners have an advantage because they are accessing this knowledge when they are still young. What about the elderly and the middle aged, how far will they go in attaining this knowledge? We need to have first things first. By this I mean to say Government should put learning centres, internet cafes near people so that people get the knowledge of working in the internet world and emailing so that we all have pleasure in doing it. We have some elderly who were born before computers, unfortunately, they are adopting it at the later stage of their lives but if we put more centres that will impart this knowledge, we will have many people benefiting from the internet and emailing.
*HON. SEN. CHIEF MUSARURWA: Thank you Mr.
President. I would like to add my voice on the motion raised by Hon. Sen. Mavhunga, seconded by Hon. Sen. Mugabe talking on ICT. We are very grateful for what the Minister responsible for IT technology has done, the way he is moving around and the way he is introducing the internet system all over the country. This is making communication easy. Let me hasten to say, Government should work hard in making enough research so that we have enough equipment in the country. For instance, IT is the way to go but we now have people communicating through cyber crime. This is happening because people have access to the ICT technology. Some people have lost their hard won cash because of the ICT. We are appealing to Government to look for and introduce mechanisms that will enable to detect any fraud or corruption that may be happening through ICT.
Let me turn to the banking sector. We have clients losing money through IT technology. A client will go to a bank and transfer $500 to another client and you will be told nothing was transferred, yet your account is showing that money has been transferred. When that happens, it means if your receiver tells you they have not received anything, you will end up transferring several times until there is some $3000 which you end up losing because of that. Suppose, you would like to transfer school fees to learners in the rural areas if the network is bad, you end up losing and the learners may end up not going to school. We are asking Government to look for ways that may curb this cyber crime. I really support this motion because it is relevant and in tandem with what has been happening of late because technology is the way to go. My call is, we need to fight cyber crime because people indulge in that because of the advancement of technology.
Hon. Sen. Mumvuri talked about the technology and the learners. There are times whereby if you were to have access to messages in other people’s cellphones, you will find that the images in that message are so bad that you start wondering whether we have to pursue the IT technology. There were some people who were sending messages of people who have been cruelly tortured and murdered yet these are falsehoods that are peddled by these people using ICT. We need a law that may state that who so ever disseminates information that may lead to alarm and despondency, there should be a set down fine which is a mandatory sentence that will fight that. We are saying technology is a noble idea but you are going to have a State capture because of this technology and you will be left out and be foreigners in your own land. That is why I keep on hammering on this, we need to fight cyber crime, fight those people that are sending falsehoods, false images and fight those people who are spreading alarm and despondency. I thank you.
HON. SEN. MASHAVAKURE: Thank you Mr. President. I would like to thank Hon. Sen. Mavhunga for bringing this motion into the House. It is a very pertinent issue that she has introduced to us. I want to zero in on the aspect of fear because I think it is one of the issues that is dragging the country backwards. We can use some of these technologies to develop ourselves and develop our systems and even develop the economy, if you like. Because we are afraid, we would rather stick to the barest minimum, may be 19th or 16th century technology because we think that is the kind of thing that protects us.
I heard some rumours that in the 1980s NASPERS, that is the parent ministry of DStv, the MultiChoice Africa, actually wanted to set up base here and because of the fear element, we were not able to welcome them. So, they ended up setting up shop in South Africa and as of a certain date around 2010 or thereabouts, stories were that South
Africa was making more than US$5 000 by selling satellite decoders only. If we had that kind of money based in this country, I think we would not be crying about cash shortages.
So, sometimes because of fear which is based on ignorance, we tend to throw away a lot of possibilities or opportunities that could actually be enhancing our economy. Not to go very far back, I think about two or so years ago, Kwese TV wanted to set up base here and stories again say that we were not sure what we wanted to do. So, they ended up inaugurating their services elsewhere in West Africa, East
Africa and even in South Africa, they got Kwese TV before Zimbabwe.
The element of fear, I think we should start shaking it off ourselves because it is not helping our lives and our systems. We fear machinery and technology. When I say ‘we’, I mean the Government because we are part of the Government as Parliament. I think it is very important that Government also seizes the opportunity to be computer literate, ICT literate and to understand that some of these things can be used to develop ourselves and our economy.
For instance, we have this problem that I always read on the internet as well as in the newspapers telling us that we are busy installing the socalled boosters to make sure that mobile networks or the broadcasting services are accessible in certain areas, and before we complete a fifth of the country, those boosters are already out of date or out of fashion. We need to buy new ones and yet we could very easily cover the whole country with the satellite system. This is because once you adopt satellite broadcasting and satellite or whatever you want to call it, even those places behind valleys, mountains and jungles, they easily get covered at once. You do not have to worry about moving every six centimeters installing a booster.
In other words, as Government, we should not just encourage our rural folk, women and the disabled in those areas to be ICT literate. We should be ICT literate first in order to be able to lure those guys because if for instance, we cover our systems with satellite technology, it means that when I go into any shop anywhere in this country, I will not face this problem where when I try to pay using mobile money, I am told that we are offline or we do not have network because that system automatically covers everything at once and it covers our broadcasting systems at once.
So, as Hon. Sen. Mavhunga was saying, information and knowledge is power, but how do we provide that power when to begin with, the first port of call whenever you install a booster is from Harare, Bulawayo, Gweru, Mutare and inbetween, in the rural areas there is nothing. How do you empower those people if you do not give them the means to restore, receive more information from radios, TVs and you are always broadcasting to your urban people. That is the reason why these people will always be behind because we are not willing to hit the nail on the head and just jump onto the very latest user friendly technologies that we can use to cover the whole country.
It is very important that we do not keep on wasting a lot of money buying new boosters and transmitters every year trying to cover the whole country when we know that before we even finish installing those things, the machinery will be out of date. Just use satellite technology we should encourage ourselves as a Government to adopt satellite technology and start broadcasting.
The other time I was travelling to some place and I was in Masvingo. I went to one of my banks and I do not have to name which one, but they told us that because the power was out, the ATMs were not functioning. When I went to the next bank which is called Barclays, the ATMS were working and I asked and they said it is because Barclays Bank was using satellite. So, they had no problems with their ATMS when we are switched out of power or when our electricity supplies went off. Some of those things, I think as Government, we should not just encourage other citizens to be ICT literate. We should be literate ourselves first, so that we are able to lease those guys. Thank you Mr.
President.
*HON. SEN. CHIMBUDZI: Thank you Mr. President. I rise to make my contribution in this noble motion which has been introduced by Hon. Sen. Mavhunga which was seconded by Hon. Sen. Mugabe.
This is an eye opener and wading all horizons as far as the use of ICT. We are saying ICT is a noble idea. I remember during our times, we did not have computers, but the best we could do was to write letters using a typewriter. We have noticed that our youngsters have quickly caught up with this technology.
Hon. President, we have noticed that even in this House, we have these communication gadgets which are given to us as presents by our children. When this phone rings during the sitting of the House, a Member is mesmerized and confused because you cannot switch it off. I remember there are times whereby Members were asked to go out with that gadget that does make noise. It is not our fault; it is because we were born before computers.
I am saying, as Members of Parliament, we need to be up to date with this technology because part of our duties especially the oversight, we are invited to the international world such as observation of the elections in those countries. So, if you are not up to date with technology, you may end up getting lost in those countries. We need to be jacked up and we need to study and research on the ICT so that we operate at the same level with our contemporaries in other countries.
We are asking that our Parliament be allocated enough funds so that it will take care of ICT knowledge to Hon. Members. At the same time, let me hasten to say when we are using this technology; let us not forget that we have our culture which we have to protect. I am talking especially looking at the women folk because we have realised that there are some people who concentrate on so much on these gadgets doing some WhatsApp. A spouse will come home and you will not be able to welcome him because you are busy communicating on your whats app. This may lead to domestic violence. That is why we are saying at times you are even deprived of your time of carrying out your household chores. Why do I say that? This is because we have had some images especially for nude pictures with women who are doing some raunchy and suggestive dances and who enjoy watching those dances and forget household chores. These gadgets should really be taken care of and we need to use them in the proper way. What really worries me is that most of the people who are involved in doing these suggestive dances are women; very few men ever do those suggestive dances. I am saying –
‘why’? We need to uphold our marriage vows.
I am one of those people who were given a donation of a very big phone. My relative said let me give it to the Hon. Senator who is highly technological. I had to go and seek for assistance from the Econet shop so that I could be educated on the operations of this machine. This young man taught me how to operate that gadget which was very expensive and advanced in technology. That is why we are calling upon the Government to put up more of these institutions so that people can receive education on ICT and operation of these gadgets.
Once again, I emphasise, let us uphold our culture. Let us not use them for staring at nude pictures of people or suggestive dances, but let us use it for spreading the gospel and counseling. Let us do away with all these things that fight our culture. This is a very important and pertinent motion. As a country, let us uphold the use of ICT for the advancement of our socioeconomic lives. I am very grateful to the motion raised by Hon. Sen. Mavhunga and seconded by Hon. Sen. Mugabe. We are saying this motion challenges us to follow the correct path in utilisation of the ICT. Let us not indulge in spreading alarm and despondency. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. SHIRI: Thank you Mr. President for giving me this opportunity to add my voice on the motion by Hon. Sen. Mavhunga and seconded by Hon. Sen. Mugabe. We know that ICT helps us a lot and it is very important to us. We need to adopt ICT as Zimbabweans. The aim of introducing ICT is to improve our socioeconomic lives. When we look at this motion as stated by the movers, they are saying ICT is embracing each and every one of us. That is why they are saying “leave no one behind,” which is agenda for 2030.
Let me talk about the elevators that we use in buildings when going up and down. We have some elevators that communicate with us. They will be telling you, you are on such a floor, the door is opening and the door is closing. This is specially made for those members who will be using the elevator. Even if they are visually impaired, they will still be able to listen to the messages being passed on. We have some areas where people living with disabilities use some electronic gadgets which are there to guide people who cannot communicate. Whenever there is a problem or some danger, there is a gadget which vibrates or emits some lights so that this person who has impairment can cope up with impending danger. That is why we are saying ICT is our livelihood.
We are looking at what is happening now. We are all on the internet searching for information. At one time in the past, we would invest in buying a lot of newspapers from different organisations but now for a dollar, you can buy your airtime and google through all the newspaper stories which you want. As stated by Hon. Sen.
Mashavakure, we need to access that. There are a lot of people who
have been communicating using their Wifi and doing their own business but at the same time, we cannot communicate properly because people are busy with their WhatsApp.
We have noticed that there are some gadgets which gives guidance whenever you want to move around in your car; there is a gadget which you can use to look for a way around a place. Even if you give it a map, it will tell you from point A to B. This can be used in preventing accidents. We also have some technology which is used for security, looking around for people who could be prowling around your area. We also have some communication gadgets which have some tracking devices. When it is stolen, you can easily track it.
In Zimbabwe, women are the majority and most of these women are now getting into businesses. We are encouraging them to use ICT in their businesses. You can get a market for marketing your goods and products. You can also sell your products through the internet instead of going door to door. That is why I am saying ICT is very essential in our lives. Through ICT, I was talking to my colleague who is in a far country and we were using video calling. Through video calling, I could see his face and expression. You can decipher whether that person is genuine or is simply wiling up time. I am saying ICT is progress and even members of the same family who are in different countries can hold some teleconference and you will also be seeing yourselves in that communication.
In our culture, we talk of paying lobola. We have since introduced the use of technology in this ceremony of marrying whereby people do not have to carry lots of money or hold the court at the same time but through internet, you can communicate whilst in different areas and also make cash transactions through the internet. We are now using group communications such as sharing information on church activities or funerals. The message is simply put using this communication gadgets and within a short time, everybody will know what will be happening. My plea is that these information centres should be properly equipped so that the youths, the women and people living with disabilities may benefit from the communication gadgets. We are very glad because the new curriculum is encouraging the use of the internet, especially computers from the ECD level. By so doing, they become computer
literate.
However, we have noticed that some of these gadgets are too expensive, ordinary people cannot afford them. So, we are asking the Government to lower the tariffs when these gadgets are being imported into the country. My wish is that each household should be able to afford a computer which can be used for communication purposes.
We also have electronic cash transfers. When we talk of people in the rural areas, they know that there is financial transaction using EcoCash. Since there are challenges in accessing cash because of liquidity crunch in the country, we can now use these electronic cash transfers. We also need to have solar power in the country so that in the rural areas, the people, especially our traditional leaders can access information using computers which will be supported by solar power. If somebody wanted to marry using the current gadget system, the Registrar General is able to track that this person is now committing bigamy because the world is now a global village and we need to embrace it. Even here at Parliament, we have realised that we are moving along with the ICT, as Hon. Senators, we have also been introduced to ICT.
My plea is that each and every one of us should be able to access ICT and use it for the advancement of social economic living. We have had some talk about people who are abusing ICT, spreading alarm and despondency, this is mainly due to people who cannot fully utilise this gadget hence they end up sending wrong messages, nude photos and spreading false hoods.
However, if the computers are introduced in the homes, these youngsters will grow into responsible adults because they would have grown with it and they know how to use them. When we were told that youngsters in the schools should be introduced to these gadgets, we were shocked because we thought that they were going to indulge in the viewing of these diabolic messages, access nude pictures but we have now understood that these gadgets can be used for learning. If a youngster is introduced to ICT at an early stage, when they grow up, they will not abuse this technology. Teachers, police and nurses in this country should develop their ICT knowledge for the development of the country and Zimbabwe will be at par with other countries in developmental issues. I thank you.
HON. SEN. MAVHUNGA: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MUGABE: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 21st March, 2018.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. SEN. TAWENGWA: I move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 3 to 10 on today’s Order Paper be stood over until Order of the Day, Number 11 has been disposed of.
HON. SEN. MARAVA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE DELEGATION
TO THE EIGHTH RETREAT OF THE ASSOCIATION OF
SENATES, SHOORA AND EQUIVALENT COUNCILS IN
AFRICA AND THE ARAB WORLD
Eleventh order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of Parliament of Zimbabwe Delegation to the 8th Retreat of the Association of Senates, Shoora and Equivalent Councils in Africa and the Arab
World held from the 20th to the 21st May, 2017 in Addis Ababa Ethiopia.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. SINAMPANDE: Thank you Mr. President. I would like to thank those who contributed towards this motion. I would want to particularly thank Hon. Sen. Mawire who seconded this motion. I therefore, withdraw the motion from the order paper. I thank you.
Motion that, this House takes note of the Report of the Parliament of Zimbabwe Delegation to the Eighth Retreat of the Association of
Senates, Shoora and Equivalent Councils in Africa and the Arab World
(ASSECAA), held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from 20th to 21st May 2017, put and adopted.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. SEN. TAWENGWA: I move that we revert to Order of the
Day, Number 3 on today’s Order Paper.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE ZIMBABWE DELEGATION TO THE 41ST
PLENARY ASSEMBLY OF THE SADC PARLIAMENTARY FORUM
HON. SEN. MOHADI: Thank you Mr. President. I move the motion standing in my name that this House takes note of the report of the 41st Plenary Assembly of the SADCParliamentary Forum, held in
Mahe, Seychelles, from 4th to 15th July, 2017.
HON. SEN. MAWIRE: I second.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: Thank you Mr. President. I want to present a report of the 41st Plenary Assembly of SADC PF which took place in Mahe, Seychelles from the 4th to the 15th July, 2017.
Introduction
Mr. President, in line with Strategic Goal Number 7, the role of Parliament in National Development, the strategy to analyse and debate policies and legislation for national development, the 41st Plenary
Assembly Session of the SADC Parliamentary Forum was convened in
Mahe, Seychelles from the 4th to the 15th July 2017 under the theme, “Harnessing Demographic Dividend in SADC Through Investment in
Youth”.
12 countries were represented at the Plenary which included:
Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Mr. President, the delegation from Zimbabwe led by Hon. Advocate J.F. Mudenda, Speaker of the National Assembly, comprised the following Members of Parliament:
Hon M. Mutsvangwa, Deputy President of the SADC
Parliamentary Forum;
Mr. President, the other delegate was the late Hon. Dr S.
Mukanduri, whom we last saw when we went to this Plenary Assembly Session. By the time he passed on, he was preparing to present this report in the National Assembly – [HON. SENATORS: Inaudible interjections] – protect me Mr. President.
THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: Order
please.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: We will greatly miss him because he was part of the delegation. He was also a member of the Democratization, Governance and Human Rights Standing Committee. The other delegates were;
Hon. T. Mohadi, Chair of the Food, Agriculture, Natural Resources and Infrastructure Standing Committee;
Hon. I. Gonese, Member of the Trade, Industry, Development and
Integration Standing Committee, and
Hon. J. Toffa, Member of the Human and Social Development and
Special Programmes Committee.
Mr. President, the following attended the Plenary Assembly as support staff;
Ms. Helen B. Dingani, Deputy Clerk;
Mr. C. Gwakwara, Principal External Relations Officer and
Secretary to the Delegation;
Ms. M. Mushandinga, Principal Executive Assistant to the Speaker of Parliament, and;
Mr. R. Sibanda, SecurityAide to the Speaker.
Official Opening and Keynote address by His Excellency, the
President, Hon. Danny Faure, President of Seychelles
Mr. President, the official opening ceremony and keynote address was done by H.E. President Danny Faure of Seychelles. H. E. President
Danny Faure officially opened the 41st Plenary Session of the SADC
Parliamentary Forum and reiterated Seychelles’ commitment to Regional integration and commended the Forum’s contribution in advancing the region’s democracy, governance, peace and development agenda.
In his address, H. E. Faure noted that the youth are an extraordinary asset of the region, hence, the need to engage them in harnessing the potential of the next generation. There is need to open up new horizons for the youths to enable them to transform Africa into an industrialised Continent. President Faure averred that, despite Africa undergoing massive transformation and being home to 7 of the world's 10 largest growing economies; the continent has a multitude of developmental challenges to overcome and these hurdles need to be tackled urgently.
He appreciated the SADC Parliamentary Forum for its contribution towards advancing the region's democracy, governance, peace and development agenda and reiterated his support for the transformation of the Forum into a Regional Parliament.
Statement by the Chairperson of the Regional Women’s
Parliamentary Caucus (RWPC)
Mr. President, Hon. Dr. Jessie Kabwila noted that sustainable investment in youth cannot be achieved without the inclusion and prioritization of young women in the developmental trajectory. In essence, she advocated for the inclusion of young women by taking their strategic and practical needs and concerns into account. She elicited that the most pressing difficulties include unemployment, teenage and early unplanned pregnancy which need to be addressed expeditiously.
Hon. Dr. Kabwila reiterated the need to change attitudes towards young women with disabilities. She urged the Plenary to be relentless in its endeavour to transform attitudes that disable these citizens which essentially entails promoting a social and physical environment that promotes full participation of young women with disabilities in all aspects of society.
In conclusion, she challenged the Hon. Speakers of the region who have not signed for the ‘HeforShe’ global action for women advancement to stand up and be counted as champions in the fight against the inequitable treatment of women, girls and vulnerable people.
Address by Dr. E. Chiviya, SecretaryGeneral Of The SADC PF
Whilst appreciating Hon. Speaker Pillay for graciously and meticulously making the arrangements for the successful hosting of the
41st Plenary Assembly Session of the SADC PF in the beautiful City of
Mahe, Dr. Chiviya applauded the fact that six Delegations were led by
Speakers and another six (6) by Members of Parliament constituting an
85% attendance to the 41st Plenary Assembly Session.
Hon. Fernando Da Piedade Dos Santos’ Statement
Hon. Fernando Da Piedade Dos Santos, SADC PF President and Speaker of the National Assembly of Angola, called for more investment in young people as a tool to spearhead development.
The President clearly outlined the impact of high population growth rates in most of the subregion’s countries which has resulted in an increased youth and children population thus posing a challenge in terms of the number of people who require support and care .In this regard, he urged politicians to take the youth on board in the political spectrum of the region.
Symposium on the theme: “Harnessing Demographic Dividend in SADC through investment in youth”
Mr. Frederick Okwayo, Population Data Policy Advisor with the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in East and Southern Africa informed the Plenary that Africa’s population currently stands at about 1.2 billion and is expected to double by 2050. In East and Southern
Africa, adolescents and young people aged between 10 and 24 years represent nearly 33 percent of the total population and is projected to double by the year 2050. This, he said, can either be an opportunity or a challenge.
The demographic dividend refers to the economic benefits that is realised when a country has a relatively large proportion of workingage population due to declining fertility and mortality and effectively invests in their health, empowerment, education and employment through public action and private sector involvement. In this regard, the region has a resource which, when, invested in, can leverage on the economies of scale.
Essentially, when fertility goes down, the population age structure changes to reflect more people in the working age group population. When that happens, the dependency ratio thus declines. Mr. Okwayo stressed that demographic dividend, therefore, presents potential for economic growth.
The region should be able to take advantage of demographic dividend using a variety of instruments that include Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Agenda 2063.
For Demographic Dividend to become real, duty bearers who include Members of Parliament, development partners and the private sector need to focus on investments in this area. The working age population needs to be empowered, kept healthy, educated and highly skilled in an environment that offers decent jobs.
SADC countries were encouraged to benefit from the demographic dividend through, increasing or expanding family planning commodities and services to change the population age structure by emulating the commonly referred to as the Asian Tigers in order to realise the benefits of demographic dividends.
Meeting of the Executive Committee (EXCO) and Resolutions of the
Plenary Assembly
The Executive Committee met in camera in accordance with Article 12
(2) of the SADC PF Constitution which exclusively stipulates that, “The
Executive Committee shall consist of Presiding Officers,
Representatives designated by the Members Parliaments and the Chairperson of the Regional Women's Parliamentary Caucas as an exofficio member” and deliberated on the following matters;
Feasibility and Hosting of Parliamentary Studies Institute
(PSI)
After assessing the progress made towards the establishment of the Parliamentary Studies Institute (PSI) and Zimbabwe’s willingness to host, the Executive Committee resolved that the decision on the establishment of the PSI must be informed by a clear understanding of the financial implications and the curriculum offered.
EXCO, therefore, tasked the Finance SubCommittee to be seized with the cost implications and curricula in liaison with an external consultant and report back to the EXCO.
The Speakers of the National Assemblies of Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe were tasked to work out the modalities of the operationalisation of the PSI.
Secretary General’s Residence
Noting that the issue had been on the Forum’s agenda for a long time, the Executive Committee resolved that Hon. Professor Katjivivi, Speaker of the National Assembly of Namibia, Hon. Monica
Mutsvangwa, Vice –President of the SADC Parliamentary Forum and Hon. Terence Mondon, Treasurer, should proceed to purchase the official residence of the Secretary General within three months from the 15th of July 2017. Furthermore, payment of Housing Allowance to the Secretary General should cease immediately after the purchase of the official residence.
Staff Issues at the SADC Parliamentary Forum
The Executive Committee raised a number of issues with regards to the general administration of the Forum and resolved as follows:
- That the SADC PF Secretariat with additional responsibilities should not be paid as this is not provided for in contractual obligations. Furthermore, the Legal SubCommittee was tasked to oversee all issues related to staff with additional responsibilities;
- The position of the Executive Assistant to the SecretaryGeneral should be filled after advertising through all SADC Parliaments. This process should take place no later than a month after the end of the 41st Plenary Assembly Session, as per established recruitment procedure for Regional positions, taking into account SADC Member Parliaments equity;
- The SADC PF's organisational structure which was meant to address the challenges of “Operating like a Parliament” be considered further, by the Human Resources and Parliamentary Capacity Development Sub Committee and the Finance – Sub
Committee.
- The Executive Committee adopted draft amendments to the Constitution of the SADC Parliamentary Forum to ensure continuity when the President, Vice President or Treasurer ceased to be members of the respective Parliaments in accordance with Article 11 of the Constitution. Furthermore,
Rule 13 of the SADC PF Constitution was amended after clause
(2) to provide for a new clause (3) being renumbered as (4)
“Immediately after the election of the President and Vice
President, and designation of the Treasurer pursuant to the Constitution, the Executive Committee shall establish Sub Committees during the same session”.
- The Plenary adopted the amendment of the Constitution
Article 11 (11) to read, “Except as otherwise provided in this Constitution, a Presiding Officer or an ordinary Member who is unable to attend a Session of the Plenary Assembly or any other organ of the Forum or a SubCommittee thereof, may be represented by a proxy designated by the Member of Parliament, paying due regard to the requisite credentials for the relevant Committee as set out in the Rules of Procedure”.
The Executive Committee resolved to support the proposal by
South Africa to back the candidature of Mozambique, the current Deputy President for the 2018 PAP Presidency and the resolution was unanimously supported.
The Mahe Declaration
The Executive Committee and the Plenary Assembly resolved to adopt the Mahe Declaration which, among other issues, committed
Members of 14 Southern African Development Community (SADC) Parliamentary Forum countries to address root causes of the prevalence of HIV among women and young girls by reducing poverty and ensuring access to quality health services and information. The Assembly recommended that women and girls should have access to education, there is need to end child marriages and protect those already in these marriages. The declaration also highlighted the importance of strengthening legislation and policies on human rights and gender, including young people and those living with HIV and reducing stigma and discrimination.
Papua New Guinea Request
On the request by Mr. Octovianus Mote, the Secretary General of the United Liberation Movement of West Papua Guinea, an organisation fighting against the decolonization of West Papua New Guinea, the Plenary resolved that, whilst committing itself to the liberation of all oppressed people, it further scrutinizes the credentials of the movement before giving it the opportunity to address the Plenary Assembly.
Treasurer’s Report
It is trite to note that most issues had an overarching bearing to the Executive Committee Report of the SADC PF. The Committee deliberated and resolved as follows:
The Staff salaries of all the employees be assessed in ZAR terms as contracts are denominated in Namibian Dollar (N$);
The Annual Contribution by Member Parliaments should be computed in ZAR and not US Dollar terms. The invoices for Annual Contributions should be sent to all National Parliaments in December of the year proceeding the financial year being invoiced;
Any increment in Annual Member Contributions should be based on an increase in the Forum's administration and operational costs and not on fluctuation of exchange rates between USD and ZAR;
No interest should be charged for any late payment of Annual Contributions so as not to penalise National Parliaments who are already experiencing financial difficulties.
▪ The United Nations per diem rate for staff should be adopted as a cost saving measure and there should not be a differentiation in the payment of such per diem; and
▪ A consultant should be engaged to review the Salary structure of the SADC PF Secretariat.
Approval of the Budget of 2017/2018 Budget
A budget, outlining the estimates of revenue and expenditure for the 2018/19 financial year was approved noting all issues raised by the
Plenary Assembly.
Motions adopted during the Plenary Assembly
In tandem with its constitutive mandate, as the policy making and deliberative body of SADC PF, the 41st Plenary Assembly discussed and resolved various issues of regional importance and concerns as set out in the Executive Committee Report, reports of the Standing
Committees and the Regional Women’s Parliamentary Caucus and
SADC PF Members’ motions.
Motion for the Accelerated Implementation of Gender
Mainstreaming as a Strategy for Gender Equality
The motion was moved by Hon. Sikhumbuzo Ndlovu of Swaziland and seconded by Hon. Monica Mutsvangwa of Zimbabwe. The motion, among other things, noted that the SADC Treaty, Article 6 (2) obliged Member States not to discriminate against any person on the grounds of gender, hence urged National Parliaments to adopt gender mainstreaming in order to ensure gender equality in decisionmaking positions in line with the SADC Protocol on Gender and Development. Furthermore, the motion urged National Parliaments and Governments to come up with creative ways of developing, implementing and sustaining gender mainstreaming strategies.
The Plenary Assembly, therefore, adopted the motion taking into account the need to promote closer regional cooperation as a precursor to Gender equity and parity.
Motion on the Adoption of SADC PF Election Observation
Mission to the 2017 Lesotho National Assembly Elections
The report on the mission to Lesotho, 26th May to 5th June, 2017, was presented by Hon. Dithapelo Keorapetse, the Mission Leader and
Member of Parliament of the National Assembly of Botswana.
With regards to the mission, the Plenary concluded that:
- There was constant engagement for all political parties including a 24 hour call centre to raise queries from the general public;
- Applauded the existence of a legally binding Electoral Code of Conduct to guide all stakeholders to the electoral process; and
- Lauded the use of transparent ballot boxes in the elective process; among other issues.
The Mission, therefore, was satisfied that a peaceful and conducive environment existed for the conduct of free and fair elections.
The Plenary also urged the SADC PF Secretariat to prioritize the attendance of Members of Parliament as opposed to the preponderance of domination of the mission by the SADC PF Secretariat as is currently obtaining. Furthermore, it was resolved that Members of Parliament of the SADC Parliamentary Forum should form part of the election observation missions in the region noting gender parity and political party representation. The report was unanimously adopted.
Motion on Harnessing Demographic Dividend in the SADC
Region through Investment in Youth
The motion was moved by Hon. Patricia Kainga, M.P. of Malawi and seconded by Hon. Sikhumbuzo Ndlovu, Member of Parliament from Swaziland.
The motion, as discussed extensively in the Symposium, focused on the strategies of facilitating and improving access to capital and credit by the youth. Furthermore, the Plenary urged the promotion of youth volunteer programmes and other internship opportunities to enhance their opportunities in education and skills development.
Finally, the Plenary noted the need to proscribe laws that improve the health and wellbeing of youths, support the increase of budget allocation to reproductive health and commodity security and enact laws that ensure that young people fully participate in the democratic governance at all levels. The motion was adopted.
Motion on the Status Quo of SADC National Women's
Caucuses
The motion was moved by Hon. Dr. Jessie Kabwila of Malawi, seconded by Hon. Candida Celeste, M.P of Angola. The motion, whilst acknowledging the steps that have been taken to ensure that women are elected into Parliament, urged Member Parliaments to do more to ensure that Women's Parliamentary Caucuses are robust and visible in their operations.
The Women's Parliamentary Caucuses should operate independently and, not be subordinate to Portfolio Committees, with adequate funding to embark on missions aimed at lobbying for 50/50 political representation at all levels of Government. The motion was adopted.
Motion on GenderBased Violence in the Southern Africa
Development Community
The motion was moved by Hon. Masefele Morutoa, MP of South Africa and seconded by Hon. Jasmine Toffa, M.P of Zimbabwe. The motion envisaged the need for Member States to recognize that gender equality and equity is a fundamental human right and thereby urged Parliaments to do all within their means to ensure that proactive legislation is promulgated to end domestic violence, eradicate child marriages and protect those already in marriages.
The motion was adopted on the strength that Parliaments should ensure that budgets for genderbased violence are ringfenced and that the Executive engages in gender responsive budgeting.
Motion on Severe Increase of Non communicable Diseases as a
Result of Overweight, Obesity and the Excessive Consumption of
Sugary Foods and Beverages as Potential Risk to the SADC
Region's Full Harnessing of its Demographic Dividend
The motion was moved by Hon. Ahmed Munzoor Shaik Eman,
M.P of South Africa and seconded by Hon. Faustina Alves, M.P of Angola. The motion urged the Plenary to note with concern, the prevalence of diabetes and obesity in the region and beyond, thereby encouraging delegates to adopt healthy lifestyles. Furthermore, the motion urged SADC Parliaments to, in line with their mandates, engage their Governments on their national medium to longterm strategies including fiscal policies to address overweight and its associated risks in line with Sustainable Development Goal 3 (SDG) 3: on “Good health and well being).
Motion on Condemning all Forms of Harassment, Bullying and
Abuse of Children in Schools and their Environment in the SADC
Region
The motion was moved by Hon. Regina Esparon, MP of
Seychelles and seconded by Hon. Patricia Kainga MP of Malawi.
The motion noted with concern the emergence of cyber bullying, harassment and abuse of children and youth through social media in
Schools and institutions of learning. Mindful of the African Charter on Human and People's Rights, the motion urged Parliamentarians to take appropriate measures to ensure that children and youth are protected from cyber bullying and physical abuse at Schools and related centres of learning.
The motion pushed for the Member Parliaments to institute a survey at country level to appreciate the magnitude of the problem and take appropriate steps to curb cyber and physical bullying.
Motion for the Adoption of the Report of the Joint Committees on Trade, Industry, Finance and Investment (TIFI) and that of
Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources (FANR)
The motion was moved by Hon. Tambudzani Mohadi of
Zimbabwe, seconded by Hon. S. Mokgalapa of South Africa.
The report focused on the training of remaining countries in the region on the Model Law on Resource Barometer (SAB) which include Angola, Botswana, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles and Tanzania. The Plenary urged the Committee to expedite training of these outstanding Member countries.
The Plenary expressed appreciation for the Summer School on
Natural Resources Governance held from 24th to 28th October, 2016, in Pretoria, South Africa and encouraged the training of more members.
The Plenary considered the provisions for the Model Law on Private Sector participation in the mining sector and observed the need to improve transparency in that sector and check on the downstream benefits to Governments and the communities at large.
The Plenary Assembly adopted to contract a Legal Drafter to work with the expert on the Model Law to finalise the document.
Motion for the Adoption of the Report of the Committee Joint
Sitting of the Human and Social and the Democratisation and
Governance Committees
The motion was moved by Hon. A. Shaik –Emam of South Africa seconded by Hon. M. Gobin of South Africa.
The motion called on Member States to continue the reorientation of Members of Parliament on Sustainable Development Goals and equip them on the accountability cycle.
The Plenary pledged to adopt the “leave no one behind” approach on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The Plenary Assembly noted that good governance is the key to attaining Sustainable Development Goals and also noted social accountability as an emerging tool for economic, social and cultural development for SADC citizens.
Motion for the Adoption of the Report of the Standing
Committee on Human And Social Development
The motion was moved by Hon. A. M. Shaik –Emam of South
Africa and seconded by Hon. J. Toffa of Zimbabwe.
The Plenary resolved to take a more proactive and inclusive approach to the SRHR programme since most Members of Parliament seem to be in the dark on this critical component of the SADC PF
Development Partners Programmes.
The Committee urged SADC Speakers to institute a mechanism for Members of Parliament who constitute the SADC PF delegation to meet regularly and share information in general.
Resolution on the Amendment of the SADC PF Constitution, to establish the Regional Model Laws Oversight Committee
The Executive Committee resolved to establish a Regional
Standing Committee on Oversight of Parliamentary Model Laws.
The Committee will be established primarily to strengthen the institutional capacity at regional level to conduct oversight over the implementation of Model Laws developed by the SADC PF.
In essence, the Committee will improve the oversight capacity of the SADC PF and increase accountability of SADC PF Member States in relation to Model Laws proposed.
It is trite to note that the Committee shall draw its resources as may be allocated by the SADC PF, hence will not be an albatross to Member
Parliaments. On this strength, the resolution was adopted.
‘HeforShe’ Awards
It is important to note that Hon. Advocate Jacob Francis Mudenda, Speaker of the National Assembly, was honoured as a champion or an advocate of the ‘HeforShe’ Campaign, in recognition of his commitment, together with his peers, to the pledge of achieving tangible results in order to consummate gender equity and equality.
In this regard, Hon. Mudenda outlined the cardinal areas to which Parliament of Zimbabwe will prioritize in propagating the apostolic cause for gender equity and equality in the region which include;
- Responsive gender mainstreaming Budget processes;
- Ensuring that gender responsive laws which promote human
rights based women’s full participation in political decision making are aligned to the Zimbabwe Constitution and are adhered to religiously; and
- To ensure that a raft of Family Laws are harmonised and
aligned to the Constitution of Zimbabwe.
For this telling proactive achievement, the Hon. Speaker together with his colleagues from Malawi, South Africa and Swaziland received awards.
It is important to note that the ZWPC has already begun aligning its action plan to the template provided for by the Hon. Speaker.
Recommendations
Resolution | Action | Timeline |
1. | Support for
Mozambique as the Candidate for Pan African Parliament Presidency. |
The Plenary pledged to support Mozambique's candidature as the President of PAP. | 30 October 2017. |
2. | The operationalisation of Parliamentary Studies
Institute (PSI). |
The SADC Parliamentary Forum tasked the Parliamentary Legal Committee to interrogate the feasibility of setting up the institution with regards to cost and curricula. | Ongoing. The Committee to report during the next Plenary Assembly. To note that the terms of reference of the Committee have since been drafted. |
3. | Inclusion of SADC PF
Members into Election Observation Missions and maintain gender balance and political representation. |
Member Parliaments to adhere to the proposal to maintain gender balance and political balance whilst seconding Members of the SADC PF. | Ongoing. All
Observer Missions to be configured on the same premise. |
4. | Raise Demographic Dividends within the region. | Members of Parliament to hold
Workshops on Demographic Dividends to tap on their benefits. Engage the relevant Ministry of Youth, Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment. |
To solicit action programmes being implemented the Ministry Youth to tap in on demographic dividends by 30 October 2017. |
5. | Consultations with peers before Plenary Assemblies. | The SADC Desk Officer to arrange meetings for consultations among the SADC PF delegation on issues of mutual concern to allow for one voice during Plenary Meetings. | One meeting by 30 October 2017 |
6. | ‘HeforShe’ Campaign. | Liaison with the ZWPC on the followup to pledged areas of work. | Progress report by 30 October 2017. |
7. | SecretaryGeneral’s Residence. | Hon. Peter Katjavivi to convene a meeting to finalise the purchase of the Secretary General's residence. Hon. Monica Mutsvanga, to be part of the Procurement Committee. | The Vice
President of the SADC PF awaits the convening of this meeting. |
8. | Hold Workshops on
SDGs to institutionalise them in the work of |
Liaison with the Ministry of
Macroeconomic Planning and Investment Promotion on what is |
Heartening to note that a
Workshop on |
Members of Parliament. | being done at country level. | SDGs was held under the theme “United Nations
System and Sustainable Development Goals” at the Sango Conference Centre, Cresta Lodge Msasa on Monday 12 June 2017, with the assistance of the UN family in Zimbabwe. Have an updated progress report on SDGs by 30 October 2017 |
|
9. | Mainstream the work of
Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR) in the work of all Members of Parliament |
To hold a Zimbabwe Parliament Staff and Chairpersons Project institutionalisation and capacity development followup workshop. | 10 and 11
September 2017. |
10 | Survey at Country level to appreciate the magnitude of cyber bullying, harassment and abuse and take steps to curb the crimes. | Write to the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education to elicit the levels of abuse and harassment. Request the Portfolio Committee on Primary and Secondary Education to include the motion in their workplan. | 30 October 2017 |
Conclusion
The Republic of Seychelles was able to successfully host the 41st
SADC Plenary session of the SADC Parliamentary Forum in the Island
City of Mahe. The Plenary Assembly pledged to ensure that resolutions adopted are implemented timeously and reported upon during the next Plenary Assembly.
The Secretariat was tasked to work on the modalities of identifying the venue of the next Plenary Assembly and write to Member
Parliaments expeditiously to allow them to make adequate preparations for the calendar meeting.
The Plenary Assembly concluded with a farewell dinner at the
Savoy Seychelles Resort and Spa on 14 July 2017.
*HON. SEN. MAWIRE: Thank you Mr. President for affording me this opportunity to add my voice on this report which was presented by Hon. Sen. Mohadi. I would like to thank Hon. Sen. Mohadi and the delegation which you went with to the SADC Parliamentary Forum on the 41st Plenary Assembly.
Unfortunately, I was not there but I will just add a few words. I would like to thank those who went on our behalf. It is very important that if there is anything taking place in the SADC Parliament, we should go and participate so that we move together with others. We were really blessed by the issues which were raised especially those issues which give us challenges as a nation. So, by attending, I think we got some good advice from other countries.
Hon. Sen. Mohadi talked about adolescent people being abused in schools and also issues to do with HIV/AIDS. The other thing which touched me is that this Committee on SADC said that they are not enough, that is why they filled up the vacant post of the Secretary General which was vacant. The report also talked about the challenges that SADC is facing in terms of economic empowerment. The Plenary did not leave out the women and the youths in their discussions because these are the people who normally face a lot of challenges. So, I would like to thank the Plenary for bringing out some of those issues in their discussions.
It is also good to work with others. We heard that our neighbouring country Mozambique, was voted in favour of the post by all the SADC countries who attended this Plenary Assembly. I would also like to thank our country because it also voted together with others voting for their neighbouring country that it should get this post. If Mozambique attains this position, they will also be able to take our problems forward than voting for someone from Seychelles.
The other thing that makes us happy is that they touched on gender equity issues that the disparity between men and women, for example in this country we are advocating for 50/50 gender balance. In our country, we have a lot of women with posts who are in the SADC Parliament like the First Lady, Hon. Sen. Mutsvangwa and Hon. Sen. Mohadi. So, if we continue going there and participating, they will start viewing us with a better eye as Zimbabweans and they will continue giving us positions. I also noticed that even in the SADC Parliament Committees, Zimbabwe was well represented. I do not have many issues to say but I will leave for others to also make their contributions, otherwise I will waffle because I was not part of the delegation that went there. Thank you.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MAWIRE: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 21st March, 2018.
On the motion of THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR
PRESIDENTIAL AFFAIRS AND MONITORING
GOVERNMENT PROGRAMMES (HON. SEN.
MUMBENGEGWI) the Senate adjourned at Twenty Seven Minutes to
Five o’clock p.m.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Wednesday, 21st March, 2018
The Senate met at Halfpast Two o’clock p. m.
PRAYERS
(THE ACTING PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE ACTING PRESIDENT OF THE
SENATE
POSTPONMENT OF THE MULTISTAKEHOLDER
CONVERSATION MEETING
THE ACTING PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE (HON. SEN.
TAWENGWA): I wish to inform the Senate that the Centre for Peace
Initiatives in Africa and Zimbabwe Institute had invited Chief Whips, Committee Chairpersons and the Chairperson of the Women’s Caucus to a MultiStakeholder Conversation with the Minister of Finance and
Economic Development. The dialogue session which was due to be held on the 22nd March, 2018 at Rainbow Towers has been postponed to the 9th
April, 2018 on account of the fact that the Minister of Finance and
Economic Development is away on official duty.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. SEN. MOHADI: Mr. President, I move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 1 and 2 be stood over until the rest of the Orders of the
Day have been disposed off.
HON. SEN. MAVHUNGA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE ZIMBABWEAN DELEGATION TO THE 41ST
PLENARY ASSEMBLY OF THE SADC PARLIAMENTARY
FORUM
Third Order read: Adjourned debate on the report of the 41st Plenary Assembly of the SADCParliamentary Forum, held in Mahe, Seychelles, from the 4th to the 15th July, 2017.
Question again proposed.
*HON. SEN. SHIRI: Thank you Mr. President. I am very grateful to Hon. Sen. Mohadi on the report she brought to this august House of the SADCParliamentary Forum held in Seychelles. Part of the report touched on the SADC model law. She mentioned Jessie Kabwila who talked at length on the inclusion of people living with disability that they should be included in development programmes.
We had an opportunity to talk to this Hon. Member when we were talking about the rights of people living with disability and equitable distribution of wealth to people living with disability, not forgetting youths and women. We also talked about their health and all issues to do with the progress and development of people living with disability.
Whenever we are talking about the disabled people on any issues,
these have a bearing on the development of the country. When we look at countries like Zimbabwe, we notice that people living with disability do not have proper representation. Well, I know people may say, there are two Hon. Senators representing people living with disability in this august House but we are saying, they are underrepresented, especially when you look at all the other forums. Let us be factual and state facts as they should be stated. People living with disability are ignored, they are downtrodden. When people are talking about social and political development, people living with disability are neglected. Let me turn to health, when we look at a woman living with disability, especially in the health sector, people living with disability visit these institutions for example a pregnant woman, the atmosphere is unfriendly, the beds are not friendly.
Mr. President, we visited some of these institutions with SDGs Committee and we noticed that there were some problems which were faced by people living with disabilities. We believe that the status of people living with disability is held lowly yet we know that every human being is precious. Every human being was created with God’s image. We know that people living with disability, if given a chance, may lead to the development of their constituencies and their country. We need to have an omnipresent in all what we do.
Even when we come to the issue of redistribution of land, let us allocate them. When we are crafting a legislation, this has to embrace people living with disability. They should benefit. We have a law which talks about equality of men and women, especially when we talk of the National Gender Policy. There is a section which talks about the rights and privileges of people living with disability. The big question is, why are we not making it universal that people living with disabilities have benefits equal to those so ablebodied persons.
We moved around the country during the Constitution making process and people were very vocal and said there should be seats reserved for women, especially 60 seats. Some people stated that they have people living with disability who were injured during the liberation war. People living with disabilities constitute about 10% of the population. That is why we are calling for a quota system which should include women with disability. I am so happy when we discuss about ICT issues in this House, we are saying people living with disability should not be left behind because if we leave such people, if we discriminate, there will be a retrogression.
Mr. President, we have people who are being sexually abused and some of these people who suffer these injustices are those people who have speech impairment. The problems they face is that when they go to health institutions, some are diagonised HIV positive – because of the signals which they are given, if a person who has a hearing impairment is told about being positive in HIV, according to them, the sign given shows that they are in good health state because the sign they use can be misunderstood. We have realised that at times because of the poor communication, some of them are given wrong diagnosis or wrong treatment hence our call that in places like such institutions, we need to employ people who can communicate in sign language so that when we have these patients coming in with their different problems, we will call for an interpreter.
In this august House, you are working with us as representatives of persons with disabilities and we seem to be doing well. When people with disability are clamouring for recognition, they are not being a nuisance, but they are talking about the realities of life. We thank Hon. Mohadi for this contribution. We once had a time whereby we were talking about Jessie Kabila where we were saying, in any institution, in any of the talks or any of the foras when they talk, they should include people with disability.
We are living with them and we can support them in what they want. Most importantly, we believe in that people with disabilities feel the impairment and they are the only people who can express living with disability and these conditions. We should know that in this country we have different people with people with disability. They need to be taken care of, respected and afforded their rights. I thank you.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: Mr. President, I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MKHWEBU: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday 21st March, 2018.
MOTION
ICT LITERACY PROGRAMME
Fourth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the need to address the ICT divide between rural, urban, young and old in the country.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: Thank you Mr. President. I want to add
my voice to this motion which was moved by Hon. Sen. Mavhunga and seconded by Hon. Sen. Mugabe. I will not say much because a lot of issues have been said. Let me recommend that this motion was well researched. You could look for every inch of information and you could get it from the presenters. What is left for us is just to augment what they have given us. Indeed, knowledge is power. We ought to know how ICTs are operated because there is all what we need as people. This is because there is easy communication. You can communicate with other people even those outside the country whenever you feel like at any time.
Also, there is reduction of costs. You will recall that long back when letters were being sent, they were taking a lot of time to get to their destinations. Sometimes you could send people to convey a message and the same message that you have sent does not get to the third person as it is. It would be distorted by then. As of now, it is a thing of the past. When we look at this motion and we look back into our communal areas, you find that we have a big problem Mr. President because all these gadgets that we are talking about need electricity which is not there or solar system.
When we talk about the solar system, it is not everyone who has got it. The rich people will always be at an advantage. So, I urge Government to quicken the process that everybody gets access to electricity in the communal areas. We may have these cell phones and whatever gadgets we have, I remember one of the Members yesterday indicated that in the communal areas, if you want to get network, you have to climb a mountain so that you could get to a higher level. So, if we are talking about the old people, they are no more able to climb mountains, and so they already have a problem.
When we are talking about the old people, you find that there are some old people who are getting their pensions through cell phones whereby they have to go to EcoCash or whatever. My grandmother cannot operate a cell phone. She has got poor eyesight, even though she can be taught how to use a cell phone, she will send her granddaughter/grandson to go and withdraw the money. Gogo will be thinking that the money is still there whereas the granddaughter/grandson has withdrawn all the money. It is very essential for us to have these gadgets, but we also have got a problem which needs to be addressed, not by going to school but may be to be taught in a manner whereby people can be assisted.
Again, if we look at the googling system, as farmers of today, you can google any information if ever you have access to electricity. Either you want medicines for your cattle as a livestock farmer, you can get medicines for your animals and just pay when you are seated where you are, or if you are a crop farmer and you want some varieties that suit your area, you just google and you will get all the information after knowing what kind of soil type you have, but all these needs electricity and that is where our problem lies.
When we come to our social media, I think it is too open that it has got no limits because this ICT that we are talking about now, the social media is now abusing it. You find that if they have an issue, they will take Hon. Sen. Mohadi’s head and put it there and they say that Hon. Sen. Mohadi talked about this when I never talked about that issue, but my picture will be there and they will produce me talking. I think there is need for the control of this social media because it is a crime and if it is a crime, they have to be arrested for giving false information.
Sometimes as politicians, we go out and have meetings. It is either if you are lucky even if you go to address a meeting and you find that you do not have enough audience, if you are lucky they will take a recording of a meeting that was done some years ago and record that you had a lot of people. If you are unlucky, even though you have a lot of people at the meeting, they will just capture a corner, maybe where there are 10 or 15 people who attended your meeting and say you did not have people at your meeting. That is the ICT that we are talking about. There ought to be a control measure on this issue. On one side it is very good but on the other side, if not controlled, we are gone.
Mr. President, if we look at children of school going age, they have no work to do. Once he has got a cell phone that has WhatsApp and other systems, we do not know what will be happening at school but when they come back home, most of their time is utilised on the phone. Whether they have got some homework to do, they do not do them because they are busy with their gadgets. Sometimes these children get all the information that they need. When we grew up, sexual activities were private thing but I tell you our children know that systems better than we do today. As a result, they end up having unwanted pregnancies. The opportunity of going to school is no longer there. I would urge all of us, including our chiefs to stick to our culture because the issue of culture is no more.
Mr. President, I attended one of our meetings one day when the chiefs were complaining bitterly about these ICTs. They said the dress code that is there these days, chiefs are no longer able to control it. This is because the Constitution allows anybody to dress the way he or she feels. As a result, cultural norms are being doomed because of these ICTs. We have to look at this positively to see how best we can bring back sanity. How can we bring back “ubuntu”? Meanwhile we are using ICTs because ICTs do not mean we should get out of the good things that are carried out by our traditional chiefs.
Mr. President, some of our young boys and girls these days are subject to drug abuse because they google and find all what is needed on these gadgets. They know which drug to take so that they become addicted. I think we have a lot of work to do. I support this motion. It is a very good motion and it was well researched. However, we have work to do in order to bring sanity in the country. If we do not do so, the moral fibre of our country will be destroyed by these ICTs if there is no control measure. With these few words Mr. President, I thank you.
*HON. SEN. GOTO: Thank you Mr. President. Firstly, I would want to thank you for affording me this opportunity. I would want to thank Hon. Senator Mavhunga for moving this motion, which was seconded by Hon. Sen. Mugabe. This motion is very pertinent. Before, I did not know how important it is but I now know how important it is. Let us go back to our culture. Long back, we had our own ICT which was used that time before we have this modern one. If you remember, we have our chiefs in here and they know how we used to communicate.
Long back, there were ways of communicating. What I heard from my grandmother is that before all this, if there is an event, I know in some schools they used to beat drums. If there is a death and you are not aware of it, you would hear people crying then you would go and enquire what would have taken place and they would tell you that there is a funeral. That is a way of communication. Some would write letters and those who were not able to write would send children. This means that long back, communication was there but not as advanced as it is in this new generation. Hon. Mavhunga, you were God sent because this is a very pertinent motion which is holding the nation together. I want to thank you for what you have done.
I also want to thank Hon. Sen. Mohadi. She touched on culture and how we used to transmit our messages. Long back, you would hear chiefs ululating. Yes, there are challenges which are there faced with the era that we are in. Of course, people now use Google and it is guiding a lot of people. There is a lot of wisdom. Even if I have my workers at the farm, we just send money there. You can do everything on your phone without any hassles. Long back we used to go to one place but the challenge that we are facing these days is that WhatsApp is full of rumours, some are good and some are bad. What you have to do is just to be wary of the rumours and know whether it is true or false.
You can even come upon pornography. So those things I think should be rectified. We should encourage our Government to train people so that they are aware of that. In schools, the new generation is happy. It has been welcomed in schools, but as old people we are just doing a little and you find that even Grade Ones can operate our phones. This motion was well researched by Hon. Sen. Mavhunga. May God bless you. It is an eye opener, now we have learnt that whatever you will be doing will not be correct. We learn by mistakes. I do not have many words because I do not want to repeat what others have already said. HON. SEN. B. SIBANDA: Thank you Mr. President for the opportunity you have given me to debate. Allow me Mr. President, to thank the mover and seconder of the motion. This is an ICT world and the world is close to one today, so it is important that we as Senators most of us grown up and matured as we are, should become more and more compliant with ICT.
When I was young I read a book which was entitled A Tale of Two Cities which depicted two cities within one environment, one that was developing quite fast and the other that was lagging behind. I am giving this example to encourage us to work on closing the gap between the rural ICT competitiveness and the urban ICT competiveness. We must take practical action to make sure that the divide between the rural and the urban is closed among other things as part of our strategy of stemming rural to urban migration. People like to be modern, people like to enjoy today’s things and if you can find them in town, you will go to town. If you have got to go town in order to send an email, you may have to go town, whereas you could if the ICT infrastructure is adequately developed, you could do it from your rural hut and you would get satisfaction.
I for one even today, have got to climb a tree in order to get network and the testimony is here, my phone fell down and the screen cracked – that is not sufficient. We are saying that the Government has created the environment in which ICT should develop itself from a commercial perspective. All that may be required of Government is that they indicate the deficiency manifesting in the market, but it is among us the commercial people, the technologically advanced. Those who are more technologically advanced, the Econets of this world, the Telone of this world to make sure that every area is accessible to ICT and that underlines the importance of the motion which Senator Mavhunga has raised.
The second thing that I have noted is that there is a direct core relation between the levels of ICT deployment. Today those two things work together; it is a bit painful to spend time somewhere between Harare and Bulawayo waiting for network in order to pay a tollgate fee of $2. Sometimes you spend 30 minutes and at the end of that you have to pay a tollgate fee of $2, if you start costing the 30 minutes that you spend, it then tells you that we have got to move faster.
I know that we want to move in the direction of economic recovery, we will not be able to do that without ICT compliance. I know that we want to constantly improve the quality of our education; the divide between urban children of the same age and rural children of an equal age is too bad for equal development of the two areas, or even equal opportunities.
I was surprised when my little muzukuru came from England, even before she had gone to first level of school, she would carry her laptop around her and using it effectively. That emphasizes that we are not in the same world. We who are in the world behind must accelerate our rate in order for mental development and also broader educational development of our children or grandchildren.
I am aware that a lot of work has been done to improve fibre optic infrastructure but what worries me is that I have seen those lines being dug several times, whether they are fibre optic or some other ICT infrastructure built, I have not understood and appreciated why these efforts cannot be coordinated and the expense associated with that expense reduced by 60% because there are three major operators in this country. The same applies to boosters; I do not understand why we should have three boosters on top of one hill or next to each other when I believe, in my ignorance that one booster could easily carry the requirement of three service providers.
We had the Minister of Home Affairs here and he proudly told us that they will be deploying police at road blocks. I accepted that but quite begrudgingly I said, should we really in this day and age of ICT be deploying physical police persons. Have we not deployed ICT a long ago, studied the traffic flows in our road system and be able to use ICT to control our traffic. I think we can, all we need is to sharpen our minds and make sure that we are as ICT compliant as possible. Mr. President, with those comments I just want to emphasis that let us think faster than we are thinking now. This is the age of ICT which is the age of speed it is not the age of caution.
Finally, yes I understand that there is need to control the flow of information but maybe let us control the social information but let us accelerate the speed of the other areas aside of the social information that we get. Our development, I have emphasized already that it will depend on the level of ICT compliance in this country, region and around this world.
*HON. SEN. MAKORE: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I would like to thank Hon. Sen. Mavhunga for bringing this motion seconded by Senator Mugabe. Things are changing dynamically, as we were growing up, there were a lot of forests and there were not so many people. We used to herd the cattle and if you lose one, it was very difficult for you to find it. So, when we were in the forest we would really have challenges in finding our cattle. So, if one came across them, then would shout which means that we had problems in communicating. However, these days, if you are heading your cattle, you can use your mobile phone to inquire and tell them that you found the cattle. This means that we are living in a changed world. The world that we are living in has changed, even its structure, that is why they say, we are living in a global village.
This issue of communication is a need and it should be there. We are sorry as the aged because we are not into it. I think we should have schools, we should get some training, there should be schools which train the old like us Hon. Senators. One late Minister once said that ‘I am not familiar with these gadgets.’ I cannot say the name because the Minister is late. That is true because there are certain things which we think we are able to do but we cannot. The most important thing for us is to be trained.
In the rural areas, there should be information centres. It is very important. I think our challenge is that of getting enough money, but if it is possible, it is very helpful. What is called information technology is the right thing. We watch television and we watched our President in
Rwanda, which is communication and that is the trend thing these days. The way we are living in this august House is that the ICT should be inclusive and as leaders who represent our constituents, we are behind because those whom we are supposed to lead are way ahead of us in terms of communication. Those who are skilled in ICT are supposed to lead us, it is very true, they are supposed to teach us and they are doing so. We are lagging behind.
I think if we can get some training sessions at least twice or thrice a week, we can teach each other on how to operate computers. These laptops that we see are loaded with modes of communication but we just watch them passing by. There are some who are computer literate because they are ‘English,’ we say congratulations to them.
Yes, there are disadvantages, as has been alluded to here, but I think society should be educated as well so that we should not abuse our mobile phones. Our children learn a lot of bad things. Our cultures are changing, even the way we dress, you wonder where people are getting it from because they have copied something which is foreign to our culture. As elders, we will be ashamed but we cannot say do not put on those clothes but the way they copy the dressing shows that they are abusing communication. Even when it comes to our WhatsApp, we should be responsible; some use it in a way that is abusive.
I think it should be followed that if we change the way people think and they are taught how to use these things responsibly, it is very good. All things that are good are not treated properly, even food, you find that some people abuse food and overeat. There is need to limit consumption of all the things to show that one can take only so much and not everything.
Mr. President, what we are saying here is that this issue is very important. These are the challenges that we have today but we should be technologically advanced. If we are not aware of that, we are behind in reaching out to the global world so that you can use Skype to communicate with your child in America or Britain. It is very important but it would be good if we get training on how to use it. What I am talking about is not new. I thank you Mr. President for giving me this opportunity to speak.
+HON. SEN. CHIEF GAMPU: Thank you Mr. President for giving me this opportunity to add my voice on the motion that was raised on ICT. I want to thank Hon. Sen. Mavhunga for bringing this motion and seconded by Hon. Sen. Mugabe. We are talking about a very important issue in this world, which is communication. It is one thing that we cannot live without, communication. It is something that came recently because way back, it was not there and we had our old ways of communication.
There are good and bad things on the communication models that are being used now. We cannot live without the communication models that are being used now but there has to be some control measures or ways of controlling it. There are so many good things about it but there are also negative things about it. For example if there is someone who is not feeling well, it is easy for you to go on WhatsApp and communicate with your next of kin. If you happen to have a breakdown, it is easy for you to pass the message to the next person. It is a very positive thing.
However, if we do not take measures, there are some people who are using it to their advantage in their dirty ways. I can say, maybe it is one of the ways of the devil to bring confusion. Most marriages have been destroyed because of WhatsApp. Our ICT has so many disadvantages if it is not protected. In my own thinking, I think the devil is using this method so that he can destroy most homes. If we do not prioritise this, you will realise that this will be the major method that the devil will use to destroy so many homes. For example, if you open twitter, you will realise that my name is there but I did not open a twitter account. There was someone who was mischievous and opened an account and then the person communicates as if it is Chief Gampu saying so many negative things. Sometimes that person will be insulting the Government or say negative things about the Government especially on the issue of tribalism. Those are the things that I had never used. The twitter account that is being used is not mine, there are people that are just mischievous. They are using their knowledge of the ICT so that they can bring confusion. If you talk about promiscuity for example, even in this House, someone who is married, you will realise that the person will be having an affair. They will communicate using the communication model that is now there and at the end of the day, you will destroy your marriage because of the ICT model we are using.
These are the things that will make us miss Heaven. You will not go to Heaven. I am not judging but that is what the Bible says. We have to be honest people, people that are proud of their culture and people with focus in their lives.
The ICT model that is being used is good and it is easy for us to communicate. Nowadays, you can be home sick but you can talk to your family as if you are next to them. It is a very positive thing but we end up misusing it. We need to teach even our own children that there are negative things about ICT especially, most of the girl children. You will realise that most of them go on internet and some of them put their nude pictures. Jesus Christ will come back for the second time and find them in such a state. If you do such a thing and post it and it goes viral, it will be difficult to erase it. People will be seeing it all over. Those are the ways of the devil. If we do not talk about this in this House, you will realise that we are also on the wrong side for God has appointed us to be the rulers of the Government and we are supposed to check whether things are done properly.
When you read the Bible, we are told about Prophet Daniel, when he saw such a picture or a vision, he collapsed because he was shocked about such pictures. Some of the people living nowadays are not shocked by this because we see it almost everyday. Way back, there used to be boundaries. Children would respect their elders. A child was not allowed to see the nakedness of their mother or their father but now, you will see it on the social media. What is happening is, for example, when an accident happens, someone will take a picture, send it and it goes viral. There are certain things that are respected that are not supposed to be exposed to everyone but most of the times, it is sent to everyone. Where is our country going? You will realise that the devil has taken over and such things are very bad. Let us not allow the devil to do such things, especially as Members of the Senate. We should not allow such things to happen. We should pray together and help each other for what is happening these days is not good.
When I was growing up, when there was death in an area, especially of an elderly person, there will be mysterious things that will happen. A grandmother would take a grinding stone or mortar and pestle and pour water and do their cultural practice but when you compare this with Christianity, there is no linkage. Some of the things that used to happen way back, God used to allow them to happen, especially before people could understand the Bible. There are times, when you are seated in your House, a web will just drop and we used to say, it is significant of a visitor that is coming. For real, the visitor will come. Such things no longer happen for the communication that was used way back has been overtaken by the new communication model that we are using, that is the new ICT that we are using. I thank you.
HON. SEN. TIMVEOS: Thank you Mr. President for affording me this opportunity. I want to thank the mover of the motion, Hon. Sen. Mavhunga, for such a very critical motion. Mr. President, I want to support this motion very strongly because at this moment in time, in the 21st century, ICT is critical and we all have to learn it. I want to highlight that the Ministry of Education had made inroads towards this
ICT because it was mandatory. I think it is part of the new curriculum.
This is one of the things that I had appreciated but I had other things that I had not appreciated in the new curricula. On the ICT side, I appreciate the move that he has done because from Form 1 to Form 6, he has insisted that our children, I am sure in the rural areas, our children and grandchildren have been coming to say, please buy us cell phones because they are needed.
As Government, speaking to the motion, there are things that can be done to protect our citizens towards abusing these ICTs like what the mover of the motion, Hon. Mavhunga said, to speed the Cyber Crime Bill in order to protect the citizens. I want to look at the television that we have at home. It has a lot of adult movies, some movies show people fighting, some show murder and some show sex but there is an application that you can use to configure your television to say, if I am not around, 13 years and below, these are the films that our children are going to watch. It is the same with the cellphones that we have, we can configure them to say, our children can only google these sites but they cannot go to these sites. These are things that can be taught at schools. When this was introduced, I spoke to Dr. Dokora about this and said, oooh my God, he has given our children cellphones without teaching them, and without even teaching the parents how they can protect their children.
I have children and the youngest one is 12. They have been taught at their school how to use cellphones and how to lock them, because there are a lot of channels that are of adult nature. We cannot fight with technology Mr. President. Technology is here to stay and in the urban areas, every child, almost everyone from 16 years and above, those with parents that can afford have cellphones. If your parent cannot afford, that is when you see the challenges of our children going out with boys at a young age because they say I can afford to buy you a cell phone and they buy. You will see your child with a cell phone. If you are given a cell phone by a boyfriend, obviously you are going to do what he bought that cell phone for.
So, Hon. Senators, this is a very important motion and we have to support it fully. What we should be saying as the Senate is that while our children are there at the secondary schools, the secondary schools now have to make sure that our children know how to protect against going to these sites that are not conducive. I am always on the internet researching and doing all sort of things. There is an issue that happened in America whereby this girl was being bullied through a cell phone until she actually killed herself. This guy was asking her out and she said no. She then registered an App using possibly another name and this boy would ask her to take a picture without a bra and he would say I want to see you wearing a pink bra and she would do that.
When this guy showed her that he really wanted to go out with her, this girl said no. This boy took these pictures of her with a pink bra, blue bra, etc printed them out and went to school and hung all the pictures for the whole school where she was to see. So, it really affected her so much that she actually killed herself. This is an issue to say we cannot go to ICT and encourage it. We are 120 years behind America, but we need to teach our children how to use these cell phones, even computers and how to protect themselves. What I have seen is that most private schools are now doing this. So, it is no use fighting with ICT because as I am holding my cell phone, this brick has nothing but this one has a lot like Wifi, and it shows a lot.
We should encourage the schools to make sure that they adopt good policies and Government also adopt and encourage schools to make sure that they protect our children, but we cannot fight with ICT. So, I want to thank Hon. Mavhunga for the motion and I hope as Hon. Members of Parliament, we are going to actually research on this motion and offer solutions to say how do we protect our children from this, but to really stop the ICT, it is a difficult task. I want to thank you Mr. President for giving me this opportunity to also add my voice. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. MAWIRE: Thank you Mr. President for according me this opportunity to add my voice. I am not going to say a lot because I might end up repeating what has been said. I want to thank Hon. Mavhunga for the motion that she brought into this House. The motion is very pertinent. I also want to thank your seconder Hon. Mugabe. You brought in a very good motion which touches on all the people in the country and at all levels. This is very important because it makes people to be aware of ICT.
I heard some saying it has advantages and disadvantages. This issue of ICT and referring to our phones, you find that some people have died. In these homes, some wives are no longer paying attention to their families because they will be on their phones and even the fathers, because of these phones; they are no longer taking care of their families. They will be busy talking to their girlfriends in their homes and people are fighting because of that. I am supporting the others who said that all of us should learn so that we will not lag behind. There should be a control of some sort. As parents, we should also control ourselves when using these phones. You find that friends of either your wife or husband will communicate with a spouse exchanging illicit things. Thank you
Mr. President.
*THE ACTING PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: Thank you
very much because you have made your contribution brief.
*HON. SEN. CHIEF CHISUNGA: Thank you Mr. President for according me this opportunity. I want to thank Hon. Sen. Mavhunga for bringing in this pertinent issue which helps us in this day and age. We also want to thank Hon. Sen. Mugabe for seconding this motion. You find that the Government should strengthen this idea of communication through ICT. I want to think that worldwide ICT is being given prominence. In other countries like Germany, they are recruiting children from other countries so that they study ICT. This helps us as a country if our Government gives priority to that. It will help us who were born before computers “BBCs” that we will be able to cope with what is happening in the world.
If you look at our building Parliament, you find that now we are using BVR when entering this building, which is technology and people through their phones, using their fingers or their faces that is a security to your phone. Also information from Potraz says that about 14 million people in Zimbabwe are now holders of cell phones, which means that things that have to do with ICT should be strengthened by the Government because our children are growing up and in the rural schools, they should be resourced when it comes to ICT and they should learn what we did not learn. Even when you board aeroplanes, whatever is happening there, it is all ICT and this encourages us to be compliant as a country so that we will be able to help the growth of our economy.
There are other countries which do not engage in agriculture and mining. They are growing their wealth through ICT. So, it can be a source of revamping our economy if our children engage in innovations. I remember one of these years in America when technology was used for aeroplanes to fly. Some preachers said that boarding aeroplanes that time was against the will of God. If God wanted us to fly, He should have given us wings. I think that was an archaic way of thinking. The same people who said that are in the forefront of coming to Africa to preach the word of God. Before we crush every point, I think we should research because some of these things are good for our country. With these few words, I want to thank Hon. Sen. Mavhunga for bringing this good motion.
HON. SEN. D. T. KHUMALO: I really would like to appreciate what Hon. Sen. Mavhunga and Hon. Sen. Mugabe did to make us have the opportunity of discussing ICT. I am only going to mention the good parts of it. For me, it really is a very good thing. While you are in your home, you have animals and whatever you want other people to come and buy, you can sit in your house, take pictures and send all over and say I have grown my flowers in my yard, is there anybody who is interested? If I am keeping pigs or goats and I want the Arabs to come and buy the goats, I will just put them on social media and they will say can you bring so much of whatever you have.
I will also look at the issue of us who like to travel. April is coming and I want to visit my children. I will book a flight to Canada or Australia whilst I am here and tell them I am coming on such a day. I will have accommodation, the flight and everything done for me. For me, ICT is great.
Secondly, I will give an example of what my daughter was doing. My daughter was at the University of Cape Town. She could go away and be in England or Australia visiting her sisters but she would still write her papers and submit them like those who are going to class every day. She would research from whereever she was and submit the written work on time while she is not in Africa. This thing is great if it is used properly.
At the present moment, I have a son who is studying at the Lupane University. When he does not understand some of the topics which the lecturers are giving, he just goes home and make sure there is wifi. What he does is to watch the university lecturers in America lecturing on the subject whilst in the house. I will also give an example on why I like ICT as a health person. When I want people to know on the issues of malnutrition, I will either study or compose what I want and send to my friends who are having different problems and say eat this type of food, rest or exercise. For me, this is great – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] –
The other reason why I like ICT is when I have problems with going to the city council to pay my bills or pay fees for children of friends I can just sit here and pay the school fees and bills using my gadget. Finally, I would like the Government, having seen all these good things to ensure that it reaches the rural areas and the different corners of Zimbabwe so that they can also have the privilege which we have in the urban areas. I thank you Mr. President.
THE ACTING PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: Thank you
Hon. Senators. I have noticed that the motion in ICT has generated much interest and debate is welcome. However, we should not digress on the motion itself and not be repetitive. I thank you.
+HON. SEN. NCUBE: Thank you Mr. President. I have realised that we are closing the Session and maybe by the time we come back in June, the motion might not be there on the Order Paper. I thought let me contribute before we close. Most of the things have been said but what I want to highlight is that I want to thank the mover and the seconder of the motion.
Firstly, I got so pissed off, especially when my bank was forcing me to now use the internet banking. The question that I posed was what about those in rural areas who do not have network and are not able to use such technology? This is more like someone who is at school and is unable to understand a certain subject. There are times when you wish to drop that subject. There are people who have spoken before me who have highlighted on the negative and positives of technology.
The use of computers and phones is very important. It makes the job especially of communication very easy. Sometimes, it takes away someone’s job. For example, in my church we have Sabbath school scriptures that we read every day. I have never bought quarterly but I have the Bible and the hymn book in my phone. All the things that you want, you can carry them in the phone; you simply download it. Hon. Sen. D.T. Khumalo indicated that even in business, there are people who might lose their jobs but the positive thing is as a business person, you can increase your job. I sell vegetables and I can sell my vegetables through the WhatsApp platform. There are so many positive things about it if you know how to use it and negative things when you do not know how to use it as well.
The phones that we have can be used as your stress relief, you can enjoy using it but we should use it in a wise way; you can book a plane in the comfort of your home, make your bill payment and make transfers in the comfort of your own homes. This is a very important motion, what is needed is that there has to be a syllabus in the schools.
We cannot say it should start in secondary school but at least in grade 5. For we know that even primary school kids have the cellphones so that they can teach them whilst they are young for them know the advantages and disadvantages of using internet.
A phone is not for watching pornography but for making your job very easy and assisting you, especially where you might need to Google certain things. The challenge is that we need to have email addresses. Some of us in this House have them and some do not. Most of the women in this Senate got the chance to be taught how to create their email addresses; however, it is very unfortunate that it was an opportunity given to the women parliamentarians only to create these email addresses, although some of the women could not get that opportunity.
In a week’s time, you can learn how to create your own email address. Hon. Members when you are given such an opportunity you should not take it for granted but use it to advance your knowledge. You can make use of these phones to download very important research material and utilise it in the colleges or schools. So, when you are given such an opportunity, please take advantage and do not let it pass you. The only challenge is that you are not able to access internet without money, you need to subscribe for you to browse the internet. However, you can also use Wifi or buy data bundles. I never used to have Wifi at home but when my child went to university, that is when I realised that it was important for me to have WiFi at home. If you pay for example $30 per month and control it in a very proper way, it will be easy and cheaper for you download or browse the internet.
We should learn to always disable data bundles when we are not using What App or browsing the internet it is not wise to be always on line. If one has important issues that they would want to check on What
App, you can go to places where there is free WiFi and do it very well.
I want to thank the mover of this motion for this is a very important motion. However, we need to urge the Government or the Ministry of Education to come up with a syllabus that will cover this area so that children are able to start learning about WiFi at an early age. When we get our war of liberation, we can put classes for people to learn how to use technology. People should be taught for example, maybe for an hour a day. Some people are very willing to learn but they do not have anyone to teach them.
There should also be many free WiFi zones, for example Netone, if you are walking from here to Holiday Inn Hotel, you will realise that there will be so many people standing around that area in order to access free Wifi. Someone can come all the way from his or her home to come and access free Wifi so that they can do all their work that they need to do on line.
This is a very important motion that needs to be seconded and debated well. We need to emphasize that we do not debate and just leave it here; our challenge is that there are times whereby the Ministers do not come to respond questions to this House. However, our term of office is coming to an end, there are certain things that we would have done and at the end of the day they are not implemented. At the end of the day, it will appear as if there is nothing that we did. So I would like to thank the mover for this opportunity that I was given to debate especially over such important matters.
HON. SEN. MAVHUNGA: I move for the adjournment of the debate.
HON. SEN. MAWIRE: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 22nd March, 2018.
MOTION
CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS OF THE ELDERLY
Fifth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the rights of the elderly as prescribed by Section 82 of the Constitution.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. CARTER: Thank you Mr. President. I would like to thank Hon. Sibanda and Hon. Marava for this motion through which we can highlight the plight of the elderly. I would like to particularly focus on Section C, of that motion, if I could just read it. ‘To compensate those elderly who had their retirement annuities and pensions ravaged by rabid inflation’
Mr. President, the elderly are like children, we were helpless when were born and as we grow older we become increasingly helpless until we die, we are as helpless as when we were born. So, the situation that faced the country when we had that rabid inflation, the elderly were helpless, they could not cope with that situation, they were like innocent victims. There was nothing they could do and that left them in a situation where they had to rely on other people to look after them. So, they became like children again and instead of having an old age which was going to be happy, playing with their grandchildren and at peace, they became fearful and anxious. They could no longer pay for their medical bills, often times without food and they ended up dying anxious to the end. That suffering has been going on now for 10 years. It is commendable that now coming before these houses is recognition of the fact that these pensions have been destroyed; pensions are the key to looking after people in their old age.
Pensions are the guarantee that you can die in peace and not worry. Those pensions were destroyed by that period in history. It is the responsibility of the Government. The Government cannot move away from the responsibility of the pension schemes – [HON. SENATORS:
Hear, hear.] – It is squarely and fairly in the hands of the Government. They cannot blame anybody else for that situation. Actually, what should happen is that we should have a national apology to all the old people of this country.
Mr. President, with those few words, I would like to say that the solutions to these problems are not going to happen quickly. We can pass a motion in this House, which I hope will be passed. The Government can introduce a new Bill that is going to take care of that problem and then open the door. However, until we have a much larger economy, free, fair and credible elections and move beyond that time, this problem is going to be with us for some time and the suffering will continue. Thank you Mr. President.
HON. SEN. MUSAKA: I thank you Mr. President. I would also like to thank Hon. Sen. Sibanda and Hon. Sen. Marava for the motion. Mr. President, I open my debate by saying, this is an important motion in the sense that all of us in this room should actually think in terms of going back to the future. Indeed, we are going back to the future, we get younger as has been said by another Hon. Senator. When you get older, you get younger.
So, it is not just the business of the Government, but society as a whole. I do agree with Hon. Sen. Sibanda that the Constitution should be followed. I think we should devise a Constitution that guarantees, maybe address the issues of pensions that were destroyed. There must be a constitutional provision. It does not matter who is in Government, whichever Government comes must take responsibility and must be paid. I lost close to $3 million, with Old Mutual my pension was gone, and Southampton, my pension was gone. You visit them, they open and press a button and ask your ID number, and say, ‘this is no longer money,’ and they say, ‘you can start all over again.’ At this age, I start all over again, no. This should never happen again. We need very strong legislation to say whoever takes over or whoever comes in must actually guarantee that people’s pensions are actually safeguarded and secured – [HON. SENATORS: Hear, hear.] – In addition – [HON. SEN.
MARAVA: Dzokorodza ipapo.] – Thank you Hon. Sen. Marava. Mr.
President, in addition to that constitutional provision, strong legal systems that protect us when we get back into the future should be put in place. I am talking philosophically here, when we get back to the future. Indeed, as the Bible says, ‘the kingdom of heaven begins here on earth.’ Let us prepare our future now with the correct legislation. When you get old, you must live comfortably and feel that you are beginning the kingdom of heaven and not live in poverty with almost nothing.
Nothing to eat, no food, it is terrible. This should not be allowed.
Mr. President, the mindset is there already, both in urban and rural areas. When I talk about going back to the future, in the rural areas we should now think in terms of actually devising villages. The thought of our forefathers was great, the idea of a village. Think about it seriously, where you put up a village with nice accommodation, whether you are in town, you live your house or home here and it is just to give you extra money and you go back to the village and build a brilliant home there, a nice and modern village where again, like I said, the kingdom of heaven begins here on earth. You are really living in heaven. The money will be coming from the town where you have your house. You do not think of retiring and go to the old people’s home here in town. Think of the rural areas, a nice village – the way it was constructed by our forefathers, brilliant stuff, the way it was done, but modernised of course. Indeed, with technology – [HON. SENATORS: Hear, hear.] – I know that some do not like the technology but the electricity and everything else there.
Mr. President, I think we should start thinking along those lines. In the urban areas, yes, I do agree, I do not condemn the old people’s homes, I encourage them too. The insurance also, there should be legislation that should compel the Insurance Companies not to look after me when I am dead. These Insurance companies like Mashfords, Moonlight and Nyaradzo, they say ‘we will guide your final destination.’ No, guide me comfortably; they should also cater for the elderly. Your insurance policy must be tied to your age when you retire when you go to Dandaro or wherever, the insurance must cater for it. There should be legislation and that is all Mr. President. I think there are a lot of things that should be done in the legislation. In the low density suburbs it is there and in the villages, there are burial societies, brilliant ideas, let us assist them. They should be provided with legislation. They do very well when somebody dies, they cook well and they are well organised. They should look after the elderly. I thank you
Mr. President.
*HON. SEN. MURONZI: Thank you Mr. President for giving me this beautiful opportunity. I would like to thank Hon. Sen. Sibanda and his seconder for moving this motion. Mr. President, most of the issues have been discussed to include that of pensions. I stood up to enlighten others on the aspect that when someone is old, they should be taken care of by their families. I dispute such an assertion because the family of that old person may have children who are poor. We live in rural areas and we travel to many areas. You feel pity Mr. President that a parent who gave birth to 12 children will have none of them employed. If they are female children, none of them will be married, they will be bearing babies and bringing them to the same home – [HON. SENATORS:
Inaudible interjections.] –
THE ACTING PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: Order, order.
Can we listen to what is being debated.
HON. SEN. MURONZI: The children will be poor and have nothing. I am actually saying, when someone gets old, the Government should do what other governments are doing, it should take care of the elderly [HON. SENATORS: Hear, hear.] – This is because if you say children should take care of parents, I dispute that. There are other people who never gave birth to any children, who will take care of those people? However, some gave birth – I will give an example of myself, in our family, we are many but each time I visit my parents at home I would feel sorry.
My brothers were married and were employed but they could not help my mother. Whenever, I visited my mother, I would feel sorry for her. When I got a seat into Parliament, I had to build a home for my mother but the boys were there and they asked why I was doing that. I am saying the Government should take care of the elderly. It is a sorry state in these rural areas. The Social Welfare is looking after the ablebodied people and the elderly are left behind. Those elderly, when they are given a 50 kg bag of maize, they do not have the 50 cents to go and grind mealimeal and the ablebodied people approach those elderly women so that they can be given a bucket in exchange for 50 cents to take the maize to the grinding mill. If they do not have that, they have to exchange with 5 litre buckets of maize so that the maize will be ground into mealie meal. Many elderly people are dying because of poverty. When I came into this Parliament, I looked like an old person. This motion really touches my heart. Let us be serious with this motion. Do not think that you will be buried with your wealth. Let us put legislation in place for the future so that everyone will thank us. Because we are eating properly, sleeping on nice beds and we are looking better, we forget that people are dying of poverty out there.
Poverty kills. People are dying early because they cannot afford the hospital bills. We should look at each other properly because all of us are representing people. When you get out there, people will approach you with their problems. They do not have even 50 cents Mr. President. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. CHIMHINI: Thank you Mr. President. I stand to support the motion and in so doing, I start by saying, the reason why many people do not want to retire, even in their old age, is because there is no social safety nets. I understand in the past day or two, one of the civil servants refused to give his age. The reason is very clear, he does not want to retire because he knows when he retires, there is nothing out there. I think what this motion is telling us is that we need to make sure that there is safety after you have retired. Nobody would want to continue working after 65 years. Nobody would hide his or her age if you know if I retire, I will get my good pension and I will survive out there. In supporting this motion, I am saying, let us really take it very seriously that the Government must take responsibility and not just allow people to become destitute.
When you get old, particularly in men, there is a disease called prostate, not even prostate cancer but just prostate. In the majority of cases, you have to be operated on and to be operated on, you need blood. Even if blood is now costing $50 per unit, it is still very expensive and unaffordable. This is a clear sign that Government must do something in terms of looking after the old aged. In the rural areas, old people are disadvantaged. There is selective application or distribution of resources from Government. Age does not know any political party. As
Parliamentarians, it is our responsibility to make sure that if there are
Government inputs, everybody qualifies and receives those handouts. There is no proper social safety net for people who are old in the rural areas.
It is also critical Mr. President that Government provides adequate budget. We need a proper budget allocation. When we go to discuss budget allocations, let us put aside something specific for the elderly. Let us not just say, we are going to look at the old people, we are going to ask other people to assist, Government has a duty. It has a responsibility and this is what the motion is calling Government to do. Mr. President, I believe it is affordable for this Government to issue cards that can be used by the elderly for free services. It should be possible. I know at times, you are told, if you are over 60 or 65, you do not stand in the queue, you go in the front. That is not what people are asking for. We are talking about issues that will give better quality life to the elderly. This is what we want Government to do. It is the responsibility of Government and we insist that as Government, we must have adequate funding so that the elderly have a decent life. I thank you
Mr. President.
HON. SEN. B. SIBANDA: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MARAVA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 22nd March, 2018.
MOTION
PROVISION OF ALTERNATIVE RESETTLEMENT AREAS FOR
ZWEHAMBA, MAHATSHE AND MATANKENI COMMUNITIES
Sixth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the call on the
Executive to provide alternative resettlement areas for communities from
Zwehamba, Mahatshe and Matankeni.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MATHUTHU: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 22nd March, 2018.
MOTION
PROTECTION OF CONSUMERS FROM UNSCRUPULOUS
BUSINESS PEOPLE
Seventh Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on protection of consumers from corruption.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MAWIRE: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 22nd March, 2018.
On the motion of HON. SEN. MATHUTHU, seconded by HON. SEN. MOHADI, the Senate adjourned at Nineteen Minutes past Four o’clock p.m.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Wednesday, 14th March, 2018
The National Assembly met at a Quarterpast Two o’clock p.m
PRAYERS
(THE HON. SPEAKER in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENTS BY THE HON. SPEAKER
APOLOGIES RECEIVED FROM MINISTERS
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have received the following apologies;
Hon. V. P. Chiwenga, the Vice President; Hon. K. Mohadi, the
Vice President; Hon. Parirenyatwa, Hon. S. G. G. Nyoni, Hon.
Chinamasa, Hon. S. K. Moyo, Hon. Mupfumira, Hon. O. Mpofu, Hon. J.
Moyo, Hon. P. Shiri, Hon. O. MuchinguriKashiri and Hon. ZiyambiZiyambi. I am advised that the other Ministers must be on their way, they might have been caught in the traffic. The Minister of Mines and
Mining Development I think he is in London.
CHANGES TO PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have to inform the House of the changes to the Membership of Committees where Hon. T. Saruwaka has joined the Portfolio Committee on Mines and Energy.
SUBMISSION OF CDF RETURNS
THE HON. SPEAKER: Following my announcement on the 7th
March, 2018, on the requirement by Members to comply with Article 5.2.4 of the Accounting Officers Instruction which provides for submission of returns for CDF, Hon. Eng. Mudzuri and Hon. Matangira raised two points of orders in relationship to the employment of an accounting officer for the constituency development fund to manage the fund at the constituency level and the scrapping of the requirement to submit job cards.
The objective of the Fund is to allocate monies equitably to constituencies for the purposes of constituency development and poverty eradication. The Constitution does not provide for the employment of staff to manage the fund or the payment of allowances for Committee members, hence the requirement in Article 9 (3) of the CDF Constitution as read together with Article 5.1 of the Accounting Officers Manual.
In terms of these provisions, the Constituency Development Fund
Committee shall consist of any other three members coopted by the Committee and must, within that Committee, establish a SubCommittee on Finance and Procurement which consists of three members with one of the three members having an administration or accounting background. The duties of the SubCommittee are listed in Article 5.2 and Article 5.2.3 states one of the duties as follows and I quote “maintaining cash book and other relevant records. The Committee shall delegate this responsibility to one of the members with an accounting or administration background”.
Let me also remind you Hon. Members that the Member of Parliament who is the Chairperson is the accounting officer of the funds allocated for his or her constituency and must, for purposes of accountability, comply with the requirements of submission of returns as stipulated in the Accounting Officer’s manual for tabling to the
Committee on Standing Rules and Orders annually by the Clerk of
Parliament.
The requirement for submission of job cards is a requirement of the CDF Constitution and must be complied with, even for small jobs as referred by the Hon. Members. The purposes for accounting for the allocated funds the CDF must also be audited by the Auditor General at the end of each financial year. The job cards may be purchased from
Printflow, former Government Printers and charged to the CDF.
Members who have not submitted any documentation are advised to do so by the close of business on 31st March, 2018. This is to allow for administrative purposes to be completed before the end of the Eighth Parliament and for all members to account for monies allocated for their constituencies before the dissolution of Parliament. No member will be allowed to claim for fuel allowance for purposes of submission of documents if they choose to submit during the period when Parliament is adjourned. The names of members who have not submitted any documentation of projects or claimed their allocation will be submitted to the Chief Whips or named after the cutoff date, which is 31st March,
2018.
INVITATION TO ATTEND A MULTISTAKEHOLDER
CONVERSATION
THE HON. SPEAKER: I wish to advise the House that the Centre for Peace Initiatives in Africa and the Zimbabwe Institute are inviting all Committee Chairpersons and the Chairperson of the Women’s Caucus to a multistakeholder conversation with the Minister of Finance and Economic Development. The objective of the dialogue is to enhance national consensus on essential factors conducive for promoting investment and economic development in Zimbabwe. The
dialogue session will be held at Rainbow Towers on Thursday, 22nd
March, 2018 from 0830 to 1300 hours. All Chairpersons must attend.
ACTING LEADER OF THE HOUSE
THE HON. SPEAKER: The Hon. Dr. Gumbo has been anointed
the Acting Leader of the House today. With that elevation, I noticed that when he entered he did not even make any obeyance to the Chair.
Although I was reading I could see with my right eye that he just walked in. Hon. Gumbo, I had advised the House that other Hon. Ministers were on their way, they might have been caught up in the traffic. Thank you.
*HON. CHINOTIMBA: My point of privilege is that yesterday I spoke about murderers but today the issue was in the newspapers that children in Binga, Masvingo and part of my constituency, Buhera and Midlands are not attending school because of the murders. It is not newspapers only, even the police have accepted that children are not going to school. …
THE HON. SPEAKER: In terms of our Standing Orders, we cannot rely on newspaper articles, unless there was evidence from an institutional source that can vouch for you, but not newspapers.
*HON. CHINOTIMBA: No, Mr. Speaker. I am not referring to the newspapers but I am referring to the issue that the police and administrators have vouched that those places are no longer habitable because of murderers. So, now that is the situation on the ground, what are the security forces supposed to do because there are murderers and the countryside is not safe. I was forced to withdraw that there were no murderers out there but they are there and instead of the Members of Parliament going there to investigate the people are saying their places are safe yet there are murderers.
My constituency is also affected. I agree that at Birchenough, murderers were found. In Midlands and Binga, the murderers were nabbed. Soldiers and the police are supposed to defend the people’s lives. If they are there, they should defend the nation and not engage in politics. So I wanted it to be on record that there are murderers out there and what should we do.
*THE HON. SPEAKER: The evidence of murderers where did you get it, from newspapers or the Police Commissioner General?
*HON. CHINOTIMBA: I got it from the police where I come from and the Binga Administrator. In fact, they are my police and I guard Binga Administration office. I have the proof that children are not going to school because of murderers. So, I want to add on that and because I withdrew it yesterday, I am resuscitating it that these MPs are not on the ground. They are not going back to their constituencies. Thank you.
*THE HON. SPEAKER: If you are speaking in Shona, I do not want you to code switch. You should stick to one language, either Shona only so that we encourage our Shona language. With that, I want to thank you for your investigations on the issue which was raised yesterday. I thank you.
ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE
HON. GONESE: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question is directed to the Deputy Minister of Finance, but it looks like he has gone out.
THE HON. SPEAKER: He has gone to the Senate.
HON. GONESE: Oh, he has gone to the Senate.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Yes.
HON. GONESE: Perhaps I will direct it to the Leader of the
House since Hon. Dr. J. Gumbo who has been designated as the Acting
Leader of the House. Last year in the presentation of the budget, the Minister of Finance gave an indication that companies and enterprises which owe money in respect of taxes and which will then pay the principal amounts by the cutoff date of the 30th June, 2018 would have penalties and interest waived on condition that they pay off the principal amounts. I would like to find out from the Acting Leader of the House as to whether the necessary administrative steps have been put in place to enable compliance with this policy thrust?
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT on behalf of THE
DEPUTY MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
I would like to thank Hon. Gonese for that very important question but it would appear that the question is generally not really a policy question to which I can respond to comfortably. It really needs a substantive Minister to respond to because it requires some information that was already passed which needs implementation through the administration. I will ask the Minister responsible to come next time and respond to that question. I thank you.
HON. CROSS: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question is directed to the Hon. Minister of Transport and Infrastructural
Development. Minister, on what basis was the firm Geiger International appointed to be responsible for the road construction from Beitbridge to
Chirundu?
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir and thank you Hon. Cross for that very important question. Mr. Speaker Sir, Geiger International was awarded a tender that had been flighted by Government for the Construction and dualisation of the Beitbridge/Harare/Chirundu road. This was done and they were awarded in May, 2016. After the award, that road from Beitbridge/Harare/Chirundu was split because the award by the SPB was not only to Geiger International, but it was to Geiger International and a company called China Harbour which is a Chinese company and short named CHEC.
The two were working together and were jointly awarded the dualisation of the Beitbridge/Harare/Chirundu road. They further on decided to split that road into two because the section from Beitbridge to Harare is a PPP and then the section of Harare ring road to Chirundu is a loan section. Therefore, the loan section was separated from the PPP section. That is the arrangement. It was awarded to the two companies on a response to a tender which had been flighted by Government and the SPB Number, I cannot remember it by head but it is clear and that is what really happened. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
HON. CROSS: Hon. Minister, on what basis will the actual contracts for the construction of the road be made? Will Geiger International go out to public tender for each section so that the price is determined under open competition?
HON. DR. GUMBO: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I do not think I understand what the Hon. Member wants me to respond to.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Can the Hon. Member explain?
HON. CROSS: Hon. Minister, you have awarded the tender to two companies but they cannot be in a price...
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Member, you address yourself to the Hon. Speaker.
HON. CROSS: Sorry Mr. Speaker, I hope you understand it. The tender was awarded to these two companies but on what basis could they have possibly come to a price because there was no design, no route, no public provision of documents and neither company is a construction company. So, I am asking the Hon. Minister to explain how will this project now go to tender because I assume that the Chinese partner was the financier and Geiger, we must suspect is not a major construction company because I cannot find any record of it in Austria and all, none at all. It has an address in a small Austrian village but that is the only thing I can find. So, I want to know from the Minister how these elements in the project can be awarded from a tender point of view?
THE HON. SPEAKER: With that explanation Hon. Minister, I am sure you can answer now.
HON. DR. GUMBO: Thank you Mr. Speaker and thank you for the explanation. Just a bit of some background to the issue on the company that is being talked about Geiger International is not a construction company, they are a financier. They applied or intended to come to do the road as a financier not a construction company, that is allowed. They provide the finances and they have got offices in Austria and in China. They are really a very big company for the information of the Hon. Member of Parliament.
Secondly, the feasibility study for the road from Beitbridge to Harare had already been done. The Ministry was already seized by the requirements for the road. When the companies that tendered for this road made their submissions, there was already a feasibility study which had taken place and it is on the basis of that feasibility study that Geiger International won the tender because by that time, they actually provided a submission that had the affordable rates at 2% to the loan that was required and the other companies actually had their interest rates which were higher than the 2% that Geiger International provided. So, it was really above board. It was really professional; a feasibility study had been done. So, it was on the basis of the feasibility study that had been done by the Ministry that Geiger international was awarded the tender. I thank you.
HON. CROSS: Mr. Speaker Sir, may I follow that up. Mr. Speaker, the Minister has still not given me a clear explanation, I accept that maybe Geiger is a financier, but the question is; how are they going to award the actual construction tenders? Will Geiger go at international tender or have they agreed a price on a cost price basis? This is because, unless we go to tender on an open tender, transparent basis, there are at least five of six companies in Southern Africa which can do that job with their hands tied behind their back. I heard you have various prices $3 billion, $2 billion, $1 billion, I do not know what they are talking about,
I do not know how these prices were established.
As far as I am concerned, the critical element is that when we go to award the actual tenders for these specific construction elements, that should be done by open public tender within the region. I just want to know what is the Minister’s intentions regarding his policy towards that specific aspect because I do not see otherwise how we are going to get a price. This is a major project.
HON. DR. GUMBO: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I think it is very important that even all Members of Parliament know what exactly is happening because at the end of the day, it is a loan to the Government. I am very grateful that the Hon. Member continues to probe for more information. Mr. Speaker Sir, an open tender was flighted it was not a closed tender.
Mr. Speaker Sir, a tender was made international and all our ambassadors got the tender and companies, not only Geiger responded to that tender. It was an open tender. Maybe I can give more information, the section from Beitbridge to Harare, for Geiger, they offered a $984 million, but what we had as a reserve was actually about $1 billion for that section. Then the section from Harare ring road is quoted at $368 million, then the section from Harare to Chirundu, $686 million. So, those figures are there. It was on that basis and also on the feasibility studies that had been done, that it was found fair to accept Geiger, which had offered a lower figure than what was offered by other companies and also what the feasibility study had asked for. So, it was really an open tender and not a closed one.
HON. MAONDERA: On a point of privilege Mr. Speaker Sir.
THE HON. SPEAKER: No, you cannot do that, you better ask a supplementary question.
HON. MAONDERA: Alright, I can ask a supplementary. Thank you. Hon. Minister, sometime in May last year, there was pomp and fanfare at Chaka there, with the former President groundbreaking that road that was going to commence in three months time. Can you tell this House why it has taken so long to start the road, given the fact that people are dying, it is so horrendous. People are dying every day in that road. The image that the road is giving to Zimbabwe is so bad because it is a link road with most trucks coming from Zambia to South Africa.
Why has it taken more than a year now to commence work on that road?
HON. DR. GUMBO: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. It is very true that a ground breaking ceremony was held on the 17th of May, 2017 at Chaka Business Centre, it is a fact. However, it remains for Hon. Members to know that on projects of this magnitude, they are not done overnight – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – Mr. Speaker Sir, when the groundbreaking was done, the contractor and the financier were present and they made the promise that they would be starting their construction in three months, they did mention that. It was not because of me, it was because of the contractor. The contractor mentioned that information to all of us and it is only fair that I could speak on that because I was the Minister responsible and that is acceptable.
The point I want to make Mr. Speaker Sir, is that having said that, there were other issues precedent to the implementation of the project and that could not be primarily be blamed on the Geiger company and its contractor. There were also issues on our side which were to be met or issues precedent declaration of project national status, the opening of the accounts – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – I think you want me to give you information, is that so?
THE HON. SPEAKER: Can you allow the Hon. Minister to answer.
HON. DR. GUMBO: That is the correct information that I am giving you and from both sides, I think colleagues are aware that, that is what happens. However, that does not also exonerate the fact that the company has delayed and I am happy to say that the Government is seized with that issue and are taking steps to make sure that it is corrected because the delay has now become too long. They have their reasons and Government has now taken its position. That will be announced very shortly.
HON. MARIDADI: On a point of order Mr. Speaker.
THE HON. SPEAKER: On a point of order or supplementary question.
HON. MARIDADI: I would rather call it a point of order because Mr. Speaker, I think to save the Minister the pain that he is going through to explain this thing which cannot be explained, which is very difficult to explain, can he bring a Ministerial Statement so that he is able to put it before the House and let the whole world know that the
Government of Zimbabwe are bad at negotiating contracts. What the Minister has just said is a clear testimony that as Government, they are very bad at negotiating contracts and they should leave this job to people who can do it. So, if he brings a Ministerial Statement, we are then able to assist Government; that is the job of Zimbabweans to assist people who cannot do it. They need a lot of handholding. We are prepared to assist Mr. Speaker. Thank you.
THE HON. SPEAKER: I was going to ask whether the Hon. Minister would acquiesce to the request of a Ministerial Statement that can give more details.
HON. DR. GUMBO: I was going to stand up to say that I have no problem in doing that. The issue Mr. Speaker Sir, is that when we give or award a tender, we do that on the response made by the bidder and you would not know whether they would have money tomorrow or not.
So, I will come and give a Ministerial Statement.
HON. MADONDO: Thank you Hon. Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister of Transport, Hon. Minister Gumbo. Is there any Government policy that takes urgent attention to areas that need urgent attention, particularly in reference to Mbudzi roundabout where people take two to three hours for one to pass through during peak hours. I know they are taking an effort to dualise and attend to that area. Is there anything that can be done earlier before they dualise? Thank you.
THE HON. SPEAKER: That appears to be a specific issue although you couched it in the sense that is there a policy?
HON. DR. GUMBO: Mr. Speaker Sir, I can because it is really an issue that is worrying everybody who drives along that road. I will answer but it is actually in the urban area but roads are roads. As we are going to dualise, we are going to make sure that we attend to the question that the Hon. Member is asking.
However, at this interim stage, we have already come up with a proposal of working together with City of Harare that we widen the road at that section, remove some of the vendors and also that side which turns to Chitungwiza so that we open up the roads. I think very soon, the Hon. Member will see that there will be people working on the road trying to open it a little bit. It is really an eyesore for everybody, I am aware of that. In the meantime, that is the interim solution that has been proposed by the Ministry of Transport and City of Harare to open it up.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Chinotimba, we do not say yaaa, aiwa tinofanirwa kuremekedzana, handiti?
*HON. CHINOTIMBA: My supplementary question is a
question or an addition that you want to dualise the road but is it not possible to construct a flyover because in other countries, they construct flyovers instead o widening the road. If you widen the road, the situation will not have been solved. Other countries like South Africa have constructed flyovers so that traffic coming from the town will go over the flyover then those coming from Chitungwiza will go under the flyover. So, I think the Minister and the Council should do away with the widening of the roads but erect flyovers.
*HON. DR. GUMBO: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I had said now, it is for the interim so that people can travel smoothly but the plan there is to erect flyovers.
HON. J. TSHUMA: Thank you very much Mr. Speaker Sir. My question was going to be directed to the Minister of Labour and Social
Welfare but since she is not in, may I direct the question to the Acting
Leader of the House.
I would like to find what is the Government policy on the cancellation of terminal benefits for pensioners who worked during the Zimbabwe dollar error and the post Zimbabwean dollar era; if he cannot answer that, could I probably indulge him to ask the Minister responsible to probably come and give us a Ministerial Statement. We have got a lot of pensioners especially in Bulawayo who did not get their money ever since they left employment. So, I would like to find out what the policy is on the calculation rate from the Zimbabwe dollar era to the multicurrency era. I thank you.
HON. DR. GUMBO: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. His Excellency, the President appointed a Commission to look into this matter that the Hon. Member is referring to. That Commission gave its report to Cabinet on Tuesday, 6th March, 2018. The report was interrogated and analysed by Cabinet yesterday. So, there is something that is coming up in order to address the question that the Hon. Member has asked. It is a very important question which is affecting quite a number of people including all of us here about what happened with our money in the banks. So, all those issues are being addressed by the
Committee that was appointed by His Excellency.
THE HON. SPEAKER: I think the Hon. Ministers response was comprehensive. So, let us wait for the report.
HON. GUZAH: My question is directed to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. In line with the current political and economic dispensation, Zimbabwe is now open for business. What is the Government policy with regards rejoining the
Commonwealth?
THE MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND
INTERNATIONAL TRADE (HON. DR. S. B. MOYO): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir for the Hon. Member’s question who intends to find clarity about Zimbabwe’s position in as far as its membership to the Commonwealth is concerned. First of all, let me give a bit of background on that aspect.
There were reasons which led Zimbabwe extricating itself from the Commonwealth. It was a resolution which was taken during a ruling party’s conference. That conference informed the Government then and it was as a result of that, that there were issues of disagreement between the issues of certain values of the Commonwealth and what were the priorities of the national interest of the country at that time. As a result of that, the country withdrew itself from the Commonwealth after a suspension.
However, the current position is that there is no impediment whatsoever why Zimbabwe would be averse to rejoining the
Commonwealth. In fact, the process which is there at the moment is that there are necessary processes and consultations which are taking place. These consultations should again inform the Executive, so that the processes of then rejoining the Commonwealth could then be undertaken. I thank you. – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.]
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. I am advised that the Commission’s Report which the Hon. Minister Gumbo referred to was published last week in the Government Gazette, so you can download that report and you can read it at your leisure and raise whatever questions that you think were not covered by the Commission’s report.
HON. D. SIBANDA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development. Hon. Minister, what is Government policy with regards to repairing and construction of roads in Zimbabwe? If you could also shed light on the roads, your Ministry is looking into at present. I am asking this question taking cognisant of the roads which are in bad shape in Matabeleland
North, South and part of Bulawayo suburbs. Thank you.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Thank you Mr. Speaker. I used to be Chief Whip, so I think I am very popular and questions are all coming to me. Mr. Speaker Sir, that question from the Deputy Chief Whip from MDC is very important. In order to make sure that I give all the information that is relevant to all areas, provinces and districts, I request, with the Hon. Speaker’s indulgence, that I bring in a comprehensive report of all the roads that we are doing nationally; the roads that we are advertising for dualisation, tarring and those we want to gravel throughout the country. I am free to bring in a comprehensive report next week on Wednesday for publication so that all our Members of Parliament can have that information and see which roads are going to be attended to by the Ministry of Transport.
Regarding the areas that the Hon. Member has asked for, we are already going to be working on BulawayoNkayi road, KwekweNkayiLupane road and Maphisa road. We are going to try and dualise those and also other new roads that we are going to be working on. We are also doing the same in other provinces and districts. So, I will bring a comprehensive report for publication in the Hansard so that all colleagues can have that information as they go to their constituencies, particularly now that there is interest for campaigning purposes. Thank you.
HON. TOFFA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question is directed to the Acting Leader of the House. Is it Government policy to allow Government and private owned vehicles to operate on the road without licences? If it is not, would the Minister instruct or advise the Minister of Home Affairs to correct the situation and enforce the law. Mr. Speaker Sir, it is almost like having masked people driving around the country and also promoting criminal activities.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO): Thank you Mr. Speaker. I want to thank the Hon. Member for asking that very important question. Government policy is that those who drive along our roads must have a driver’s licence which is not fake but a true driver’s licence issued by the Government of Zimbabwe. Also those who might be driving other vehicles on the roads, like buses and combis, they must have a road permit which is issued by the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development.
I take the point that there are many people who are possibly driving along the roads without the requisite licences or number plates for their cars, et cetera, I think the point and suggestion made is well taken. I will liaise immediately with the Minister of Home Affairs to make sure they police the roads and make sure that they arrest the situation. It so happens that I am the Acting Minister of Home Affairs, so I will act on that as soon as I leave here. I thank you.
HON. TOFFA: May the Hon. Minister please confirm that it is illegal to have a vehicle without number plates on the road?
HON. DR. GUMBO: Mr. Speaker Sir, number plates for a vehicle is a requirement that you must always have them on your car but if you have lost your number plates or the car is still to be provided with number plates, you are given a period by which time you should have the number plates put on the car. Going around without number plates is unlawful.
HON. NDUNA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. My supplementary is there is 1.5 million vehicles on our roads, of which 22 000 are
Government and quasi –Government vehicles. There is about 120 000 Public Service vehicles of which 65% of those are not licenced in terms of Public Service permits. Is it not prudent to expedite the issue of computerisation of the transport management system so that effectively, the Minister could know which of those are not licenced; which Public Service vehicles do not have any permits because if they carry people unsuspecting; innocent passengers, if they are not licenced, they tend not to get any compensation for those that would have been bereaved and for those that would have been injured in those Public Service vehicles?
HON. DR. GUMBO: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I think the
Hon. Member who used to be the Chairperson of the Committee of Transport and Infrastructural Development is fully aware of what processes we are taking as a Ministry; together with their
Committee because he still remains a Committee member to address that
issue which is very critical and important? Therefore, plans are already
underway Hon. Member and through you Mr. Speaker Sir, to address the issue of concern by the Hon. Member. I thank you.
HON. MANDIPAKA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question
is directed to the Acting Leader of the House, Hon. Dr. Gumbo. At one time, Hon. Minister, the Government made us believe that they were moving swiftly to decongest the city but up to now, nothing has been done. Is Government contemplating to decongest the great city of
Harare and other cities?
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I want to thank Hon. Mandipaka for that very important question. It is true that Harare needs to be decongested. The Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing working together with the City of Harare are planning to decongest Harare. In the past week or so they have tried to do that and found that it was premature to have done so because other logistics had not been attended to. At the moment, I think City of Harare is working on areas where the pickup points are going to be located. When those places are in shape, the City of Harare, working together with Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing will make sure that people are dropped outside the city centre and only the vehicles that will be licensed to come into the city will be allowed to ferry people in and out of the CBD. Those logistics are being worked on.
Also, it is not fair for us and Government and City of Harare to just say let us not have “mishikashikas” or kombis when we have not arranged for alternative transport system to cater for our people as they travel in and outside Harare. The City of Harare and the Ministry of Local Government are working on the logistics of decongesting the city as we speak. I thank you.
HON. MANDIPAKA: As a follow up to the traffic congestion in the great city of Harare, is it Government policy that untrained touts work at intersections to control traffic whilst the Police stand aloof, doing nothing?
HON. DR. GUMBO: Mr. Speaker Sir, although that is not a follow up question, I still can respond to say that the issue of touts and other people is an issue that is not very easy to deal with. It is easy to deal with when the logistics that I have spoken about are in place. We can then be able to separate those who are touts and those who are not; those who are doing what is legal and those who are not. I plead that the
Hon. Member gives time to the City of Harare and the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing to look at the decongestion of the city through the plans that I have already alluded to. That will also address the issue of touts. I thank you.
HON. T. DUBE: Hon. Speaker Sir, my question is directed to the Ministry of Health and Child Care through the Leader of the House. I am raising a question which overrides most of the questions that have been asked this afternoon. What is happening is that there is a very serious health workers strike which is taking place. Yesterday I received a message from the Minister of State in the President’s office from Bulawayo who had visited Mpilo Hospital, which is a referral hospital for five provinces. She was crying just like a little girl that people there are dying like it is a war.
Just before I came to this House, there is a doctor who phoned me and asked me not to mention his name. He said he was carrying out some post mortems and the situation is getting worse by day. I am told tomorrow, the nurses are joining the strike. What is happening is that only the nurses were running the hospitals when the doctors were already off but tomorrow the nurses will be joining the doctors. I thought our duty is to make sure that we look after the lives of those people who elect us to this place but we do not seem to put out priorities. We have not heard any answer from the Ministry of Health and Child Care on what is happening. Nobody has said anything and the people continue to die. Are we going to just let these people go on dying and nothing is said or done? I believe that saving lives is priority number one. I wish to hear from the Leader of the House since the Minister is not here. What is being done since Cabinet met yesterday?
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO): Thank you Mr. Speaker. It is a very sad story and situation that we have in the country for now. It is a very emotive one which requires a response from the responsible Minister. All I can say for now Mr.
Speaker Sir is that Government is seized with the issue and that the Minister of Health and Child Care made a presentation yesterday and that he was nearly at a situation whereby he will be able to come to a closure of the situation. He was in negotiations with the doctors, mostly who were junior doctors but also that the other sections like senior doctors and nurses would be joining. The discussions are going on and Government is seized with the matter. As far as I know, from yesterday, the Minister responsible was in serious discussions with the concerned medical staff. I do hope that very soon they will come up to an understanding. I will convey the matter that has been raised to the relevant Minister so that he can make a Ministerial Statement so the nation can know where we are going. I thank you.
HON. CHIMANIKIRE: Thank you Mr. Speaker. Why has Government not invoked a state of emergency and called in Army doctors to assist? This has happened in the past. What is happening now? We are under a new dispensation.
HON. DR. GUMBO: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I take very seriously the very wise advice given by the Hon. Member. I will convey to the Minister responsible.
HON. KANENGONI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question
is directed to the Minister of Foreign Affairs. What is the policy of your Ministry in terms of pushing other Ministries to comply with International Conventions such as the SADC Protocol Agenda so that they can push for gender mainstreaming since these are protocols we have ratified as a country.
THE MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND
INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION (HON. RTD. LT. GEN. DR.
S.B. MOYO): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir for the Hon. Member’s question. Yes, it is generally Government policy and I am sure all political organisations, and it is a constitutional provision that gender mainstreaming is a priority in terms of attempting to be compliant with the gender protocols within the SADC and also within the African Union. These are matters which we are continuously keeping all the other ministries up to speed in terms of undertaking and complying.
HON. KANENGONI: Hon. Minister, do you have any
mechanism in place that can push ministries to comply or it is up to the ministries to do it laissez faire fashion?
HON. RTD. LT. GEN. DR. S.B. MOYO: I believe the Hon.
Member’s question is seeking to clarify the matter of gender mainstreaming within the ministries and also in other official agencies of Government, including other international organisations where Zimbabwe is allowed to appoint members in those particular posts. Yes, the whole structure of employment in Government particularly, is now centralised under one agency which is the Public Service Commission. Therefore, it is the one which is responsible and charged with the responsibility that any vacant post which arises within any of the ministries must consider filling, with consideration of the gender mainstreaming and issues.
*HON. MAPIKI: My question is directed to the Minister of Transport. What is the Government policy in terms of graders which were bought by Government and given to the local authorities that need servicing after doing one job?
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Thank you Mr. Speaker for the question which was asked by Hon.
Mapiki. I have not come across all those graders but what I am aware of Mr. Speaker, is that if the Hon. Member can put his question in writing so that I can consult the local authorities to investigate where we have those many graders. What I know is that all vehicles that work are supposed to go for service and they can be grounded but they can be serviced. I would be happy if I were to come across those graders, because no one told me that there are many lying idle. I know that the graders that are working some of them need servicing and it is taking time.
The graders that we had in local authorities were taking a long time to be serviced as they were waiting for a company called Univern Enterprises, which supplied the graders through ZINARA. It was taking a lot of time waiting for a person to come from Harare to service a grader which is in Muzarabani; but the Hon. Member is aware that from the 9th – 12th of January, 2018 I toured all the provinces and told all the councils that the graders are now theirs. They will be serviced by ZINARA because we have a fund of up to $3 million. Probably where he comes from, the council there is not following the procedure that we told them to so that the graders are back on the road. I think you should go back, consult and see whether people in your constituencies are doing the proper thing.
*HON.MUFUNGA: My question is directed to the Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development. Minister, what plans do you have as a Government to rehabilitate the road that comes from Koma to Chiundi going to Kairezi which is 70 km after 30 years?
*THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. MARUMAHOKO):
Hon. Member, it can be difficult for the Minister if it is a particular road. I do not think he can give you any help if you are referring to a particular road.
*THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Thank you Mr. Speaker. You have helped me because I had said I will bring a brochure into the House so that you can see where your roads are. That one is not a specific question but a policy question which I must go and consult my officers. You should put your question in writing so that the Minister can answer you adequately.
HON. MATANGIRA: My question goes to the Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development. We have tollgates that were built by the past dispensation Government. Masvingo/Mutare road, we have got one tollgate that was built there. Masvingo/Mutare road again, another tollgate was built. Chiredzi/Ngundu road 15 km after Triangle, we have got a toll gate that was built there. Chivhu/Murambinda road, we have got a tollgate that was built. Bindura/Mt. Darwin road, we have got a tollgate completed, that was built. We have got one in Bulawayo that goes to Gwanda. These tollgates are not working. What is Government policy on money that was spent? Those tollgates should be generating money to repair those roads. What is Government policy and why are they not functional? I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Thank you Hon. Matangira for asking that question. Mr. Speaker Sir, the
12 plazas or tollgates that the Hon. Member is referring to were advertised for use and the State Procurement Board then could not award because there was an issue of synchronising the operations of ZINARA and other companies to make sure that the systems agree. Members may want to know that the Plumtree/Bulawayo/Gweru/Harare/Mutare Road operates on a different system from these other roads like the Bindura one and the Masvingo Road. They operate differently.
So, what is being worked out in order to make sure that we arrest the situation of corruption and compatibility is that the systems must talk to each other. That is the system that is delaying the operation of the tollgates that the Hon. Member is asking for and that is what is called
ZIMTIS, which is the system that Government is trying to implement. As soon as that system is put in place and the synchronisation is done, those tollgates will be operational. That is the delay which is the implementation of the system that it must be used in the operationalisation.
HON. MATANGIRA: In Shona, we have got a saying which says and I quote: “Mumba mukapinda nyoka haupazi imba nokuda kwekuti mapinda nyoka, unorova nyoka yobuda”.We cannot have a situation where we have got very bad roads from Chivhu to Murambinda and subsequently, to Mutare Road because we are afraid of corruption. We should route out whoever is corrupt and the country must march forward. Why can we not do it Mr. Speaker Sir, through the Minister?
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER; Order Hon. Member. I think
you did not get what the Minister was saying. It is not entirely corruption. There are other things as well. You should have listened very well since you are the questioner.
HON. ZINDI: Thank you Hon. Speaker. My supplementary is based on the rationale. I need to understand in terms of policy direction. What was the rationale in terms of setting up the tollgates? I am asking this because if you are driving from Manicaland, particularly from
Mutare to Harare, we have two tollgates. The first one is just before
Irene Township and the second one is in Rusape. Again in Manicaland, we have the Harare/Masvingo tollgate. In other words, we have a total number of three tollgates.
On the Bindura/Harare Road, there is only one. I am just giving that as an example and there are quite a number of other highways where you find that they only have one tollgate. My question is what was the rationale of coming up with a number of tollgates given the disparity that we are observing today? Thank you.
HON. DR. GUMBO: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. The rationale for putting up tollgates is determined by the length of the road. That is the rationale that is given. So, I do not know what else I can say but it is the rationale, normally less than 100 kilometres in between. That is what we use. I thank you.
HON. GONESE: My follow up question to the Hon. Minister is related to the issue of the timeframe. He has given an indication that there are certain issues which are being ironed out. I do not know whether the Hon. Minister is in a position to give an indication as to when we can expect these to have been sorted out and when we may expect the tollgates to become operational?
HON. DR. GUMBO: Thank you Mr. Speaker and thank you Hon. Gonese for that question. Initially when I responded to the question, I said that the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development had already advertised for operationalising these tollgates, that means as far as we are concerned as a Ministry, it was urgent and still it is very urgent, but there are other stakeholders who are involved. The synchronisation is the coming up with a system that I have called ZIMTIS, which actually gives us that constraint which I am not really at liberty to say when. All I can say to the Hon. Member is that I keep on pushing that this thing be done as soon as possible but as it is, it is outside my jurisdiction. I thank you.
HON. BEREMAURO: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question
is directed to the Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development. Can you update this House on progress made so far with regards to the construction of Zimbabwe Dry Port in Welvis Bay in Namibia bearing in mind that similar projects for Zambia and Botswana started operating seven years ago. Can you update this House on the progress made so far?
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Thank you Mr. Speaker and thank you Hon. Member for asking that question so that I can update the House on the Walvis Bay Dry Port project. The Walvis Bay Dry Port Project was awarded to a Namibian company to do the construction and midway we had problems with that contractor. They just absconded and we had problems of completing that project. It should have been opened long time ago. Our Dry Port is different from the other Dry Ports that the Hon. Member is referring to in the sense that on ours, we started constructing a proper Dry Port in
Namibia as opposed to what other countries did.
The Hon. Member wants to know at what stage we are at the moment. We are now at 95% completion and so, we hope to commission that Dry Port as soon as possible. The new contractor that we have now put in place is working flat out to make sure that we can now commission and start utilising the Dry Port. I thank you.
*HON. MUPFUMI: Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Leader of the House Hon. Dr. Gumbo. What is Government policy in connection with a disease in South Africa which is faced with listeria which comes from a bacteria called listeria monocytogenes which has killed a number of people in South Africa. As we are speaking, the disease is now in Namibia. We have our people in South Africa, what is Government saying about this issue?
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Thank you Mr. Speaker. I want to thank Hon. Mupfumi for his question.
The Minister of Health and Child Care, Dr. Parirenyatwa talked about this issue yesterday, that in South Africa this disease has killed about 180 people and it started in Polokwane which is closer to Beitbridge. However, he said that as Government we had put an embargo that cold meats coming from South Africa are not getting through our borders because that is where the disease is emanating from. So, the
Government policy as the question has been asked is that they are trying to make sure that meat from South Africa is not imported into the country. They are also investigating those who are showing any signs of the disease so that they get assistance quickly. However, they are saying that right now no one has died or shown any signs and symptoms of that disease. Thank you.
Questions Without Notice were interrupted by THE
TEMPORARY SPEAKER in terms of Standing Order No. 64
PENSION FOR MR. LUKE CHITSIKE
- HON. GONESE on behalf of HON. MACHINGAUTA
asked the Minister of Labour and Social Welfare to indicate when Mr. Luke Chitsike whose National Identity No. 63053618 O42 and was formally employed by the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation from 1974 to December 2003, would receive his pension after submitting the application in 2004.
THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE
(HON. KAGONYE): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. Thank you Hon. Member for asking the question. In response to that question; NSSA contributor, Luke Chitsike, National Identity Number 63053618 O42 passed away on 3rd September, 2006. The widow, Tropia Chitsike submitted her claim for survivor pension on 11 January, 2007. Funeral Grant benefit was paid on the same date. The survivor’s pension and children’s allowances were processed and paid with effect from the date of death. Both survivor’s pension and children’s allowance payments are up to date. The payments are being made through the widow’s
POSB Account Number, 10653002633. Thank you.
MOTION
FIRST REPORT OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON SMALL
AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISE AND COOPERATIVE
DEVELOPMENT ON THE STATE OF FINANCIAL INCLUSION OF
SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES, COOPERATIVES AND
OTHER CHALLENGES
HON. MANGAMI: I move the motion standing in my name that this House takes note of the First Report of the Portfolio Committee on
Small and Medium Enterprise and Cooperative Development on the
State of Financial Inclusion of Small and Medium Enterprises,
Cooperatives and other challenges affecting this sector in Zimbabwe.
HON. KWARAMBA: I second.
HON. MANGAMI: Mr. Speaker Sir, I am going to give a report for the Portfolio Committee on Small and Medium Enterprises and Cooperative Development. We are aware that the Ministry no longer exists so I need to dispose this report.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee on Medium Enterprises and Cooperative Development carried out some findings concerning the state of financial inclusion of Small and Medium Enterprises Cooperatives and other challenges affecting this sector.
1.0 INTRODUCTION
Mr Speaker Sir, financial inclusion is widely recognised as a critical development issue and aspect of formalisation of the Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) sector. The International Monetary Fund (2016) acclaims financial inclusion as the bridge between economic opportunity and outcome which not only opens doors for families to smooth out consumption and invest in their futures through education and health, but enables businesses to expand, creating jobs and reducing inequality. The concept of financial inclusion generally entails delivery of financial services at affordable cost to sections of disadvantaged and low income segments of society.
SMEs and cooperatives play a key role in Zimbabwe's economic development. The Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable SocioEconomic Transformation (ZimAsset) and Ten Point Plan outlined in the 2015 State of the Nation Address accentuate the importance of SMEs and cooperatives in poverty alleviation and employment creation. The FinScope Survey of 2012 indicated that the SMEs sector employed approximately 5.7 million people and according to the 2017 Monetary Policy Statement it is estimated to contribute more than 60% to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Thus, the Portfolio Committee on SMEs and Cooperative Development conducted an inquiry into the state of financial inclusion of this economically strategic sector.
2.0 OBJECTIVES
The major objectives of the Committee were:
- to assess efforts being made by the Government to provide affordable capital to SMEs and cooperatives;
- to ascertain barriers to the financial inclusion of SMEs and cooperatives, including access to loans and banking services;
- to establish the impact of cash shortages and use of plastic money on small businesses and cooperatives;
- to find out the effects of using United States dollars, alongside Bond Notes and mobile money transfers as mediums of exchange on SMEs and cooperative sectors; and
- to establish challenges affecting operations of SMEs and cooperatives.
3.0 METHODOLOGY
Mr Speaker Sir, your Committee used the following methods to gather information:
- Oral evidence and written submissions from the Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises and Cooperative Development on 18 May
2017.
- Field visits to SMEs and cooperatives in:
- Harare – Mbare Musika, Mupedzanhamo, Gulf Complex and
Machipisa
- Bulawayo – Mashumba and Kelvin Complexes
- Gweru Nyangara Steel Products, O.B Investments, Sun
Engineering
and Dalo Welders
- Chegutu Danangwe District Youth in Mining Cooperative
(DDYMC)
- Hwedza Hwedza Dairy Farmers Association, Hwedza Organic Producers Association and Hwedza Women’s Savings and Credit
Cooperative
- Guruve Mukaera Art Village and furniture manufacturers at
Guruve
Centre
- COMMITTEE FINDINGS
- GOVERNMENT FUNDING INITIATIVES FOR SMES
AND COOPERATIVE SECTORS
Mr Speaker Sir, the Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises and Cooperative Development apprised your Committee of initiatives made by Government to provide loans to SMEs and Cooperatives as follows:
4.1.1 Small and Medium Enterprise Development Corporation
(SMEDCO)
SMEDCO is the vehicle through which Government provides financial loans to the SMEs sector. In 2015 the Government approved the transformation of SMEDCO into a microfinance bank, a process which has been delayed by capitalisation challenges. A solution emerged in November 2016 when the Reserve Bank issued the entity Treasury Bills worth $10 million with a tenure of 10 years, maturing in 2026. Fifty percent of the amount ($ 5 million) was approved for use to support the application for the microfinance bank licence to the Reserve
Bank, while the remainder ($ 5 million) was to be utilised to secure liquidity to restart operations of SMEDCO. Your Committee was informed that $2,2 million was secured through a borrowing structure facilitated by Agribank and lending is currently underway. In addition, SMEDCO is also to be issued a $5 million Retrenchees Loan Facility from the National Social Security Authority (NSSA) for onlending.
Furthermore, SMEDCO was allocated $ 2,1 million in the 2017
National Budget, as part of the revolving fund for onlending to SMEs. The Committee was informed that by May 2017, no disbursements had been received from the Treasury. The Ministry of SMEs and Cooperative Development officials further highlighted that they were still to be advised by the Ministry of Finance and Economic
Development on modalities pertaining to presumptive tax ringfencing for onlending to SMEs as proposed in the 2017 National Budget Statement. Your Committee was also informed that the BADEA loan facility approved in 2014, as part of efforts to capitalise SMEDCO had not yet been operationalised and was due to expire in October 2017. SMEDCO awards loans for fixed capital requirements, working capital requirements and consumption (salary based) loans to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) operating in Zimbabwe. In addition, borrowers have to be of legal majority age or legally registered entities where the majority are Zimbabwean citizens.
4.1.2 Mr. Speaker Sir, your Committee was further informed of loan facilities availed by the Reserve Bank in May 2017 for SMEs and cooperatives in pursuit of the National Financial Inclusion Strategy
(20162020) as follows:
a) CrossBorder Facility
Mr. Speaker Sir, your Committee was further informed that the total loan facility is US$15 million and is aimed at financing exports and imports by members of the Cross Border Association. Your Committee was informed by the Ministry of Small and Medium Enterprises that loans were being disbursed through Agribank for local production and Homelink to members traveling out of the country for business. Loans are issued as per borrower's request subject to approval by the Cross
Border Traders Association to members with proven bank accounts at Agribank. The interest rate is 10 percent per annum and the tenor is up to 6 months for working capital.
b) Business Linkages Facility
Mr. Speaker Sir, your Committee was further informed that a US$10 million loan facility has been targeted at financing value chain linkages of farmers to manufacturing entities to enhance value addition. Under this scheme funding will be provided to farmers to produce agricultural commodities with a ready market in the manufacturing sector. Loans will be disbursed through Agribank and other participating banks at 10 percent interest rate per annum. The tenor is up to one year and a grace period of 6 months before repayment starts will be granted to enable the farmer to harvest.
c) Gold Support Facility
Mr. Speaker Sir, the loan facility was established in 2016 as US$20 million and increased to US$40 million in 2017. Its purpose is to support smallscale and artisanal miners in order to boost gold production in the country.
The eligibility criteria is existence of a traceable gold delivery track record to Fidelity Printers and Refineries or its accredited buying agents for a minimum period of one year. In addition, applicants should be willing to be subjected to regular monitoring by Fidelity Printers and Refineries officials through site visits and records inspection. It is disbursed to individuals through direct payment to supplies of goods and services and deposits into company accounts at 10 percent interest rate and maximum tenor of 3 years. In the event of breach, the outstanding balance attracts an interest of 15 percent per annum.
d) Horticulture Facility
Mr. Speaker Sir, the total amount of the loan facility is US$10 million which is targeted at financing horticultural production. Your Committee was informed that loans will be disbursed through Agribank and CBZ at an interest rate of 10 percent per annum. The maximum tenor is 12 months for working capital and 3 years for capital expenditure while the repayment frequency is monthly. Eligible horticultural crops are shown on Table 1 below:
Table 1: Eligible Horticulture Crops
Vegetables | Peas, Sugar snaps, Beans, Onions, Potatoes, Carrots, Cherry tomatoes,
Mushroom, Butternuts, Baby marrow, Gem squash, Paprika, Chillies |
Fruits | Citrus, Banana, Avocado, Grapes, Strawberry, Raspberry, Blueberry,
Blackberry, Peaches Nectarines, Passion fruit, Apples, Pears, Papaya, Mangoes, Pineapples |
Nuts | Macadamia, Cashew, Pecan, Hazelnuts |
Cut flowers |
e) Women Empowerment Fund
Mr. Speaker Sir, the amount of the loan facility is US$ 15 million and is targeted at financing projects owned and managed by women. It will be disbursed through POSB, commercial banks and microfinance institutions at an interest rate of 10 percent per annum and up to a maximum tenor of 3 years. Participating financial institutions will determine the loan amount to be issued to applicants.
4.1.3 Mr. Speaker Sir, other funding projects for SMEs and cooperatives being spearheaded by the Ministry of SMEs and Cooperative Development in collaboration with development partners are:
- a) OPEC Fund for International Development targeted at
Poverty Alleviation Programmes
Your Committee was informed that the Ministry of SMEs and
Cooperative Development secured US$ 7.6 million loan under the
OPEC Fund for International Development targeted at Poverty Alleviation Programmes. The fund was earmarked for three provinces, namely; Masvingo, Matebeleand North and Manicaland. It specifically supports the following projects: savings and credit cooperatives, income generating projects; livestock development projects; optimisation of local endowments such as beekeeping and farming activities; and setting up of entrepreneurial training institutes.
- b) Inclusive Growth and Sustainable Livelihoods Project
(20162020)
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) availed
US$ 5 million for the Inclusive Growth and Sustainable Livelihoods
Project covering four provinces, namely; Binga, Lupane, Nkayi and Gokwe South. Areas targeted by this funding include; technological innovation training, valueaddition and startup support, market access support, microcredit support and strengthening national and subnational capacities.
4.2 FIELD VISITS TO SMES AND COOPERATIVES
During the field visits to SMEs and cooperatives in various provinces of the country, your Committee's findings were as follows:
4.2.1 Bank Accounts
Mr. Speaker Sir, your Committee found out that very few SMEs in the country have bank accounts. Only 40% of small scale miners at Danangwe District Youth in Mining Cooperative in Chegutu were reported to have individual bank accounts at the time of the Committee's visit. SMEs at Mupedzanhamo, Machipisa and Hwedza Women’s Savings and Credit Cooperative informed the Committee that current cash shortages hampered them from opening and making use of bank accounts. Once a deposit is made, it becomes difficult for SMEs and cooperators to withdraw cash in order to restock wares and use in cooperative activities. Additionally, SMEs at Machipisa, Mashumba and Mupedzanhamo informed the Committee that business performance was low due to liquidity challenges currently faced by the country, thus too little profits were generated for them to deposit into bank accounts.
4.2.2 Accessibility of loans
A majority of SMEs indicated that they started business ventures using personal funds and were constrained from accessing bank loans by lack of collateral requirements, such as title deeds and pay slips. Furthermore, exorbitant loan interest rates imposed by banks and fear of attracting stiff penalties in case of failure to repay on time were reported to be major deterrents. Your Committee noted that most SMEs and cooperatives were not aware of the various Government loan facilities which had been launched on 5 May 2017. Players across both sectors expressed a strong desire to borrow affordable loans to purchase their own machinery and expand business ventures, including furniture manufacturers at Kelvin Complex, in Bulawayo, O.B Investments in
Gweru and Hwedza Organic Producers Association.
4.2.3 Mediums of exchange
Due to cash shortages currently being experienced in the country, SMEs are finding it difficult to conduct transactions using EcoCash as they are unable to cash out the same. SMEs also denounced the emergence of unscrupulous EcoCash agents who levy a 10 percent charge on all withdrawn amounts. Operators in rural areas have also resorted to barter trade, for example, SMEs at Mukaera Art Village informed the Committee that they accepted products such as grain and clothing in exchange for pottery, baskets, stone sculptures and steel tins.
Mr. Speaker Sir, out of all the provinces and sectors toured by the Committee, none of the SMEs and cooperatives used point of sale machines. This was attributed to lack of information and difficulties in accessing the gadgets from banks as they do not have bank accounts, delays in issuance and nonresponse to those who applied by banks. The requirement for a bank account in order to access one was outlined as a key factor militating against the use of point of sale machines. In addition, Mr Speaker Sir, SMEs at Mupedzanhamo market informed the Committee that rental charges for point of sale machines were too high, amounting to to $70 per month. Further to that, traders at the same Market highlighted that point of sale machines were “unsuitable” for their brisk business models. Other factors such as lack of electricity and limited internet connectivity at places where SMEs conduct their operations were also raised as factors derailing the uptake of point of sale machines.
Your Committee was informed that some suppliers require “hard cash” upfront while others hiked prices by 5 percent where the medium of exchange is Bond notes or coins in comparison to the United States (US) dollars. Traders at Machipisa Market, in Harare also highlighted that some suppliers required that at least 50 percent currency for purchasing goods be US dollars. Alternatively, some suppliers were reported to reject electronic and mobile money transfers as a way of avoiding high transactional costs. Mr Mutasa of Nyangara Steel Products in Gweru informed the Committee that suppliers who accept electronic money transfers impose higher prices.
4.2.4 Other challenges faced by SMEs and cooperatives
a) Inadequate infrastructure
A considerable number of SMEs in urban areas conduct their businesses on undesignated areas, due to space challenges. In addition, some rentpaying SMEs operate in open areas where their wares are exposed to weather elements, for example, furniture manufacturers at Guruve Centre and flea market traders at Machipisa. The challenge of ablution facilities was raised by SMEs operating in various areas, including, Mupedzanhamo, Guruve and Machipisa. The Committee learnt that the public toilet at Machipisa had been converted partly into a restraunt and storeroom after “sale” by Harare City Council to a private operator, leaving SMEs to pay for use of such facilities. Markets visited by the Committee were also in a state of dilapidation as evidenced by cracked floors, leaking roofs and sewage pipes exposed at Machipisa and Mupedzanhamo in Harare.
In contrast, cooperative societies such as Danangwe District Youth in Mining Cooperative have built their own offices and clinic at the mining site in Chegutu. Additionally, Hwedza Women’s Savings and Credit Cooperative showed the Committee a shopping mall they were constructing at Hwedza Growth Point during its visit.
b) High rental charges
SMEs decried high space rental charges imposed by local authorities in view of poor business performance as shown on the table below:
Table 2: Space rental charges at SME Complexes
Place | Monthly Rental charges |
Gulf Complex, Harare | $300.00 per 20 square metres |
Kelvin Complex, Bulawayo | $150.00 per 4 square metres |
Mashumba Complex,
Bulawayo |
$100.00 per 6 square metres |
Mupedzanhamo, Harare | $60.00 per square metre |
Mbare Musika, Harare | $37.00 per 1,5 square metres |
Machipisa, Harare | $20.00 per square metre |
c) Taxation
Traders at Mupedzanhamo Market lamented that high customs duty charges imposed by the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA), currently pegged at $5 per kg for second hand clothing threatened the viability of their businesses. Your Committee learnt that there were about 2000 traders at Mupedzanhamo, out of which none brought goods into the country through the designated ports of entry in order to evade the prohibitive customs duty charges. Traders proposed that import duty for secondhand clothing be reviewed to between $10 and $25 per bale which is affordable.
d) Difficulties in acquiring licences
Danangwe District Youth in Mining Cooperative in Chegutu informed the Committee that despite being registered as a cooperative since 2012 and delivering gold to Fidelity Printers and Refineries progressively over the years, the cooperative experienced difficulties in acquiring a mining licence, due to an ownership wrangle with African Consolidated Resources, now Blackridge Investments. Consequently, there was uncertainty which negatively affected long term planning and infrastructural development at the mining site. Furthermore, Mush Leather Products at Kelvin Complex in Bulawayo bemoaned that exorbitant licencing fees imposed by the State Procurement Board, amounting to $600 to acquire a vendor number prohibited them from bidding for tenders to supply safety shoes to the Bulawayo City Council. Moreover, steel fabricators in Gweru and hardware traders at Machipisa Market informed the Committee that they lacked information on how to acquire import licences.
e) Exclusion from local business opportunities
Furniture manufacturers at Mashumba Complex in Bulawayo complained that funeral assurance and service companies in the city shunned their products and instead acquired coffins from other towns or import from neighbouring countries, such as South Africa. In addition, Mr Kwangware of Sun Engineering in Gweru bemoaned that SMEs in the steel fabrication business were looked down upon by Government institutions such as the City Council and Midlands State University which contracted companies based in Bulawayo for purposes of supplying steel products and maintenance services. Furthermore,
Nyangara Steel Products and O.B Investments noted that the
Government imports steel equipment which SMEs manufacture locally and meet international standards.
f) Lack of markets
SMEs visited by the Committee largely sell their products on the local market and require Government assistance to secure external markets, for instance, Nyangara Steel Products in Gweru. Operators at Mukaera Art Village, in Guruve informed the Committee that the lack of markets for their products was a serious challenge.
g) Defaulting clients
SMEs at Mashumba Complex decried losses incurred due to defaulting borrowers, particularly, civil servants while O.B Investments in Gweru noted that clients failed to pay for ordered products, such as bus trailers.
f) Centralisation of services
Mr P. Moyo at Kelvin Complex in Bulawayo informed your Committee that furniture manufacturers experienced difficulties in acquiring Forestry Commission licences to buy wood due to centralisation of services in Harare.
5.0 COMMITTEE OBSERVATIONS
5.1 SMEs and cooperatives greatly contribute to the country's GDP in the form of high quality furniture products manufactured at Mashumba and Kelvin Complexes in Bulawayo and gold delivered to Fidelity Printers and Refeneries by Danangwe District Youth in Mining Cooperative in Chegutu, for instance.
5.2 The $ 2,1 million allocated to SMEDCO in the 2017 National Budget and portion to be ringfenced from presumptive tax form part of the revolving loan fund for onlending to the severely capital constrained
SMEs.
5.3 The BADEA loan facility which was approved in 2014 for the recapitalisation of SMEDCO has not yet been operationalised and will expire in October 2017.
5.4 Loans under the CrossBorder Facility can only be accessed by members of the Cross Border Association subject to approval by leadership of the Association.
5.5 SMEs experience difficulties in accessing point of sale machines which ultimately affect business performance.
5.6 There is variable pricing of goods and commodities for different mediums of exchange such as cash, EcoCash and electronic money transfers.
5.7 SMEs and cooperatives lack adequate information on available loan facilities and support services offered by the Ministry of SMEs and Cooperative Development.
5.8 High custom duty charges on secondhand clothing currently pegged at $5 per kg discourage compliance and instead fuel smuggling.
5.9 SMEs and cooperatives lack business management and marketing skills.
5.10 Inadequate infrastructure and high rental space charges are major challenges faced by the SMEs sector.
5.11 SMEs are prohibited from bidding for the supply of goods and services to public entities by expensive charges of acquiring vendor numbers amounting to $600.
5.12 Gold mining and infrastructural development activities by
Danangwe District Youth in Mining
Cooperative are derailed by lack of a mining licence.
5.13 Some funeral assurance and service companies import coffins from neighbouring countries such as South Africa.
6.0 RECOMMENDATIONS
6.1 The Ministry of SMEs and Cooperative Development should immediately publicise available loan facilities and its services through the media, local authorities and elected representatives in both urban and rural areas. District officers should adopt a ‘handson’ approach to ensure that SMEs obtain necessary support and information, including advice on taxes and how to acquire import licenses. Key to this is the adequate allocation of financial resources to the Ministry through the National Budget for critical items, such as, furniture and vehicles to equip officers to discharge their duties.
6.2 SMEDCO should expeditiously conclude the Retrenchees' Loan Facility with NSSA and decentralise its banking facilities to district level by December 2017 so that some of the loan facilities targeted at SMEs and cooperatives can be channeled through the entity.
6.3 Approval of loans should, with immediate effect, be left to banking institutions, particularly the CrossBorder Loan Facility in order to enhance fairness and transparency.
6.4 There is need for Government to consider provision of equipment to SMEs and cooperatives in lieu of cash loans as in the case of the Gold Facility.
6.5 The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development should disburse the $ 2,1 million allocated to SMEDCO in the 2017 National Budget and finalise modalities of ringfencing a portion of presumptive tax for onlending to SMEs by August 2017.
6.6 The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development should find ways of unlocking the BADEA loan facility before it expires in October 2017.
6.7 The Government should increase affordable loan support for SMEs and cooperatives to foster growth and ventures into manufacturing to facilitate resuscitation of local industry.
6.8 The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development should, with immediate effect, enforce one pricing regime for cash, mobile and electronic transactions.
6.9 Banking institutions should immediately issue point of sale machines free of charge. This should be accompanied by educational campaigns by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development in collaboration with Ministry of SMEs and Cooperative Development on the use of point of sale machines.
6.10 The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development should operationalise the Movable Property Security Interests Bill and Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Bill without delay, once they become law, to facilitate access to loans and business opportunities by SMEs and cooperatives.
6.11 The Ministry of SMEs and Cooperative Development should intensify business management training programmes for SMEs and cooperatives in both rural and urban areas.
6.12 The Ministry of SMEs and Cooperative Development should continuously facilitate business linkages between SMEs and cooperatives on one hand, and large corporates, for example, furniture manufacturers at Mashumba and funeral service companies in Bulawayo; and steel fabricators in Gweru and the City Council, among others.
6.13 The Ministry of SMEs and Cooperative Development should vigorously assist SMEs and cooperatives to secure markets for their products locally and regionally.
6.14 The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development should review customs duty for secondhand clothing downwards from $5 per kg to $0,20 per kg which is affordable in order to foster compliance and benefit the fiscus.
6.15 The State Procurement Board should simplify the tendering process and reduce vendor number charges by 50 percent to $ 300 to enable SMEs and cooperatives to compete for the supply of goods and services to public entities.
6.16 The Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and
National Housing, in collaboration with the Ministry of SMEs and Cooperative Development, should endeavor to provide adequate infrastructure at affordable cost to SMEs and cooperatives countrywide by December 2017, taking into consideration the depressed business environment they are operating in.
6.17 The Ministry of Industry and Commerce should, with immediate effect ban the importation of coffins.
6.18 The Ministry of Mines and Mining Development should resolve the ownership dispute over Danangwe mining claim in Chegutu by December 2017 to enable smallscale miners to operate smoothly, without any hindrance.
7.0 CONCLUSION
Mr. Speaker Sir, the efforts being made by Government to provide capital to SMEs and cooperatives are commendable. However, more can be done to facilitate the financial inclusion of this critical sector by addressing the fundamental issues highlighted above and earnest implementation of the National Financial Inclusion Strategy (2016 2020). If offered the necessary support, SMEs and cooperatives can turn around Zimbabwe's economy. Steel fabricators visited by the Committee in Gweru exhibited great manufacturing potential, for instance, Sun Engineering manufactures fork lifts and farming implements, among other products. According to the World Bank (2017), financial inclusion is a key enabler for 7 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. It is in the national interest for us to leverage on the financial inclusion of
SMEs and cooperatives to spur the country’s economic growth.
*HON. KWARAMBA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. This is a very good programme of financial inclusion because it alleviates poverty. As you have heard, people face a lot of challenges in the SMEs. Taxes are very high and people are not able to pay their debts, on the market places they sell from anywhere and their wares are affected if it rains and they fail to pay back the loans. We have also heard about toilets. At Machipisa, some of the toilets have been turned into beer halls and they sell their wares without proper ablution facilities. The rents that they pay are very high and they cannot pay taxes; the money that they got from the RBZ, they will not be able to repay the loans. Lastly, those who operate these SMEs need to be educated on how to manage their businesses so that they will be able to pay back their loans. Thank you.
HON. MANGAMI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My I take this opportunity to thank my seconder Hon. Kwaramba for seconding this report. Since we are aware that the Ministry no longer exists, I move that this House takes note of the First Report of the Portfolio Committee on Small and Medium Enterprise and Cooperative Development on the state of Financial Inclusion of Small and Medium Enterprises,
Cooperatives and other challenges affecting this sector in Zimbabwe.
Motion put and adopted.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE DELEGATION TO THE 136TH ASSEMBLY OF
THE INTER PARLIAMENTARY UNION (IPU) HELD IN
BANGLADESH
HON. CHAKONA: Mr. Speaker, I move the motion standing in my name:
That this House takes note of the Report of the delegation to the 136th Assembly of the InterParliamentary Union (IPU), held in Dhaka,
Bangladesh, from the 1st to 5th April, 2017.
HON. MACHINGURA: I second.
HON. CHAKONA: Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. This is the report of the 136th Assembly of the InterParliamentary Union (IPU) held in Dhaka, Bangladesh from 1st to 5th April, 2017.
Introduction
The 136th Assembly of the InterParliamentary Union (IPU) was held in Dhaka, Bangladesh from 1st to 5th April, 2017 under the overarching theme “Redressing Inequalities: Delivering on Dignity
and Wellbeing for All”.
The Assembly was attended by delegations from 126 Member
Parliaments including Zimbabwe. Accordingly, Hon. Edna Madzongwe, President of the Senate led a Parliamentary delegation comprising the following Members and officers of Parliament to the 136th Assembly of the IPU and Related Meetings:
Hon. Paradzayi Chakona, Member of Parliament;
Hon. William Mutomba, Member of Parliament;
Hon. Amos Chibaya, Member of Parliament;
Hon. Raymore Machingura, Member of Parliament;
Hon. Justice Mayor Wadyajena, Member of Parliament;
Hon. Betty Nhambu, Member of Parliament;
Mr. Kennedy M. Chokuda, Clerk of Parliament;
Mr. Ndamuka Marimo, Director in the Clerk’s Office;
Mrs. Roselyn M. Makoni, Director in the President of the Senate’s
Office;
Ms. Rumbidzai P. Chisango, Principal External Relations Officer and Secretary to the Delegation; and
Mr. Gift Chinyemba, SecurityAide to the President of the Senate.
Mr. Kennedy Chokuda and Mr. Ndamuka Marimo attended Meetings of the Association for the Secretaries General of Parliaments
(ASGP) held concurrently with the Meetings of the IPU.
SADC and Africa Geopolitical Group Meetings
As per established tradition, the SADC and Africa Geopolitical Groups held their meetings prior to the 135th Plenary Assembly in a bid to reach consensus on issues under consideration during the Assembly, specifically the emergency item for inclusion on the Agenda of the
Assembly and vacancies to be filled during the Assembly.
Of particular note on vacancies to be filled during the Assembly is that Hon. Betty Nhambu and Hon Member from Mali were nominated by the Africa Group to fill vacancies in the Committee for Human
Rights of Parliamentarians. Sadly the two lost to representatives from
Iceland and France during an election held during the Governing
Council Meeting on 05 April 2017.
With regards to the emergency item for inclusion on the Agenda, the Africa Group meeting resolved to support the merged Item submitted by Belgium, Kenya and the United Kingdom on “International Action to Save Millions of People from Famine and Drought in Parts of Africa and Yemen”.
Official Opening of the 136th Assembly of the IPU and Related
Meetings
The 136th Assembly of the IPU and Related Meetings was officially opened on 01 April 2017 in the presence of H.E. the Prime
Minister of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh, Ms. Sheikh Hasina.
In her welcome remarks during the Inaugural Ceremony, Hon. Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury, Speaker of the Parliament of Bangladesh, chronicled the history, culture, cuisine and achievements attained by Bangladesh since independence with particular focus on poverty alleviation and gender parity among others. The Hon Speaker called on
Parliaments to build an equitable, inclusive and peaceful world.
In a speech read on his behalf, Mr. A. Guterrers, United Nations
Secretary General, noted the importance of links between the United Nations and the IPU. He acknowledged the role Parliamentarians can play in turning aspirations into action. In this regard, he welcomed the theme of the Assembly and called for the creation of a more compassionate, inclusive and peaceful world.
Speaking at the same occasion, Hon. Saber Chowdhury, President of the IPU, reaffirmed the IPU’s position in major conflict areas including the two state solution to the IsraeliPalestinian conflict, peace on the Korean Peninsula, an end to the conflict in Syria, a solution to the crisis in Yemen and an end to the persecution of Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar. The President of the IPU urged Parliamentarians to find alternatives to the current model of wealth distribution.
Mr. Martin Chungong, Secretary General of the IPU, articulated the programme of the 136th Assembly of the IPU paying particular attention to issues under consideration. In this regard, he underscored the need for the Assembly to recommend specific, actionable outcomes on how to tackle inequality.
In her address during the Inaugural Ceremony, H.E. Sheikh Hasina, gave a passionate rendition of the country’s path to freedom and democracy. She outlined efforts made by Bangladesh to build a democratic and just society including through strengthening democratic institutions and ensuring an independent and vibrant media. She called on Member Parliaments to implement the outcomes of the Assembly at
National Level.
Emergency Item
The proposal put forward jointly by Belgium, Kenya and the United Kingdom entitled “Urgent Action to Save Millions of People from Famine and Drought in Parts of Africa and Yemen” was adopted and added to the Agenda.
General Debate
The General Debate on the theme “Redressing Inequalities: Delivering on Dignity and Well Being for All” provided an opportunity for Member Parliaments to exchange views, share good practices and propose recommendations for addressing the rising levels of inequality in the world. The interventions formed the basis for the Dhaka Communique adopted by the Assembly.
As per established tradition, a High Level Segment introduced the theme to the General Assembly. Hon. Margaret Mensah Williams, President of the Forum of Women Parliamentarians provided a gender perspective on the theme. She underscored the need for Parliamentarians to address gender inequality through enacting legislation.
The youth perspective was articulated by Hon. S. Remeithi, President of the Forum of Young Parliamentarians who emphasized the need to address inequalities as discrimination and marginalization put the youth at risk of becoming involved in violence and conflict.
The keynote address was delivered by Mr. K. Satyarthi, Nobel
Prize Laureate and Honorary President of the Global March against Child Labour, who chronicled his experiences in the global movement to end child slavery and exploitation. He called on Parliamentarians to take determined action to ensure the dignity of children and their wellbeing.
The Hon. President of the Senate’s Contribution to the General
Debate
Hon. Edna Madzongwe, President of the Senate, joined distinguished delegates in making a contribution to the general debate on the theme, “Redressing Inequalities: Delivering on Dignity and Well
Being for All”
In her statement, Hon Madzongwe made reference to current global economic and political environment which she described as fraught with imbalances. She emphasized the need to address inequality as a way of guaranteeing responsible political development and stability. In this regard, Parliaments have an important role to play in redressing inequalities.
Hon. Madzongwe took the opportunity to share Zimbabwe’s initiatives to redress inequalities arising from the country’s colonial history of racial discrimination and unequal development. She highlighted programmes such as provision of free health care and education, Fast Track Land Reform Programme and economic empowerment and indigenization which have been put in place to redress inequalities.
She mentioned the Zimbabwe Constitution which codifies the principle of equality and nondiscrimination.
200th Session of the Governing Council
The Governing Council, per its mandate, took note of and approved recommendations on a number of issues including the implementation of the IPU Strategy, financial statements of the IPU, cooperation between the United Nations and the IPU, reports of specialised meetings and the amendments of the IPU Statutes.
Of particular note is that the Membership of the IPU has increased to 173 National Parliaments following the approval of the request for affiliation by the Central African Republic and the Parliament of Tuvalu.
The Governing Council also approved the unanimous recommendation by the Executive Committee to appoint Mr. Martin
Chungong, current Secretary General for a second term in Office.
The Forum of Women Parliamentarians
The Forum of Women Parliamentarians was attended by Hon.
Edna Madzongwe and Hon. Betty Nhambu.
The Forum considered, from a gender perspective, the draft resolution entitled “Promoting Enhanced International Cooperation on the SDGs, in Particular on the Financial Inclusion of Women as a Driver of Development”. The meeting agreed that it was essential to create a favourable environment for financial inclusion of women by ensuring equality before the law, especially, in areas such as work, family, property and inheritance. Delegates underscored the need to promote innovative financial services accessible to all women, including in rural areas, and that proper access to those services had to be linked to training, mentoring and financial education programmes.
Forum of Young Parliamentarians of the IPU
The Forum of Young Parliamentarians was attended by Hon.
Mayor Wadyajena, Hon. Amos Chibaya and Hon. Nhambu. The
Young Parliamentarians outlined their country experiences with regards to youth participation in politics highlighting the achievements and challenges in their respective countries. In order to enhance youth participation at IPU Assemblies, Member Parliaments were encouraged to include the youngest members of their parliaments in delegations to
IPU Assemblies.
The young parliamentarians discussed their contributions to the business of the 136th Assembly, focusing on means of securing youth inclusion, not only in education, employment, civic participation and political leadership, but also in community life, sports and arts.
Resolutions Adopted at the 136th IPU Assembly
Dhaka Communiqué on Redressing Inequalities: Delivering on Dignity and Well Being For All: The Communiqué recognizes the problem of inequality in all its forms – social, economic and political. Unemployment, lack of productive assets, limited access to education and health care, exclusion of people from political processes, exclusion of women from financial sectors, small number of multinationals in different sectors of the economy are some of the factors identified as the symptoms of inequalities.
The Communique welcomed Goal Number 10 of the United Nations SDGs which calls on the International Community to reduce inequalities within and among countries. The Communique, therefore calls for a holistic approach in addressing the challenges. It recommends that National Parliaments consider adopting the following measures to address the problem of inequality and to ensure that no one is left behind:
- Strengthening Legal systems;
- Making Parliaments more representative;
- Making the economy work for all;
- Strengthening social dialogue and human capital; and
- Improving International Cooperation.
The Assembly adopted, by consensus a Resolution by the Standing
Committee on Peace and International Security on “The Role of
Parliament in Respecting the Principle of Non Interference in the Internal Affairs of the State”. The Resolution recognises the principle of refraining from the threat or use of force and the principle of nonintervention in the internal affairs of sovereign States as part of the fundamental pillars of international law and international relations. The resolution notes that it is the responsibility of parliaments to strengthen democracy, promote, protect and encourage respect for human rights, support dialogue, encourage the peaceful settlement of internal disputes, take all necessary actions to consolidate national unity and peaceful negotiations among different sectors of society, and prevent the forcible overthrow of democratically elected and legitimate governments. In this regard, Parliaments were urged to, among others:
Protect and promote all human rights;
Establish national legal bases and mechanisms to prevent or counter external interference;
Work on conflict prevention and implementing peace building strategies;
Put in place mechanisms to ensure that there is representation in the institutions of government of persons with disabilities, minorities and other marginalized groups; and
Consider ways to increase the number of young people involved in decisionmaking processes at all levels.
The Assembly adopted a Resolution submitted by the Standing
Committee on Sustainable Development, Finance and Trade on
“Promoting Enhanced International Cooperation on the SDGs, in
Particular, the Financial Inclusion of Women as Drivers of
Development” The resolution underscores the importance of creating a favourable environment for the financial inclusion of women by ensuring equality before the law, especially in areas such as work, family, property and inheritance, and the importance of ensuring that women can live a life free from violence, enjoy their right to education and access to health. In this regard, the Resolution calls on Parliaments to:
- Take appropriate measures to remove legal provisions that discriminate against women in areas such as work, family, property and inheritance;
- Adopt legal frameworks and policies that increase financial inclusion in general, the financial inclusion of women in particular;
- Encourage the implementation of educational programmes for women and girls aimed at developing the knowledge and expertise of women to access financial services and financial literacy;
- Promote the inclusion of women in the extensive use of widely accessible information and communication technologies that facilitate women's access to digital financial services; and Adopt and promote policies and laws that enhance fair competition practices in the provision of financial services.
The Assembly adopted by consensus, the Resolution on the
Emergency Item on “Urgent International Action to Save Millions of
People from Famine and Drought in Parts of Africa and Yemen” The
Resolution recognises drought and conflict as major causes of famine. Furthermore, the Resolution recognizes the devastating effects of famine on both humans and livestock. In this regard, the Resolution calls for
Parliaments to:
- Prioritize legislation that promotes food security and proper mitigation measures against famine and drought;
- Encourage their governments to contribute to the extensive international campaign of the United Nations to raise funds in order to finance the fight against the famine;
Furthermore, the Resolution calls on the United Nations and the international community to remain focused on those most vulnerable to the current drought and famine conditions, especially women, children and the elderly.
The Assembly noted the report of the Standing Committee on Democracy and Human Rights. The Committee held an interactive debate on “Sharing our Diversity: The 20th Anniversary of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights”. Delegates noted that democracy was a process that was never fully achieved. Furthermore, delegates noted that the road to democracy is not easy, and requires constant commitment to work with the people. There was a strong agreement on the universality of the principles of democracy, as set out in the Universal Declaration on Democracy.
The Committee also held another interactive debate on “Act now for adolescents: the role of Parliamentarians in Promoting Adolescent
Health and Wellbeing”. The debate focused on the causes of adolescent deaths such as road traffic injuries, suicide, unsafe abortions and early maternity. With regards to issues of adolescent health, it was agreed that passing laws, allocating budgets, and monitoring the status of adolescent health and wellbeing were necessary steps to improving the health and well – being of adolescents.
The Assembly noted the report of the Standing Committee of the United Nations Affairs. The Committee discussed Parliamentary followup of the SDGs in preparation for the 2017 session of the UN HighLevel Political Forum (HLPF) on Sustainable Development. The debate emphasized the strong role Parliaments need to play to build national ownership of the SDGs while ensuring the “domestication” of that
global framework to each country’s specific context. It was noted that financing would be key to the success of the SDGs and that parliaments must work to ensure sufficient resources through the budget process.
The Committee also deliberated on the main theme of the 2017 HLPF, “Eradicating poverty and promoting prosperity in a changing world”. Delegates noted the importance of ensuring that the needs and interests of the most vulnerable sectors of society were considered and properly addressed. In this regard, policies targeting the most vulnerable groups are key to poverty eradication.
The Assembly endorsed the Executive Committee Statement on the Situation in Venezuela. The Statement endorsed the concerns of the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians on the cases before it of current and former parliamentarians from the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuelan. The IPU expressed grave concern at the deteriorating political, economic and social situation in Venezuela. The Statement urges all sides to the crisis in Venezuela to dialogue as the sole means of resolving the current crisis and to ensure a speedy return to normalcy in the interest of the Venezuelan people.
Recommendations
It is pertinent to note that there are recurring issues for action by Member parliaments which have come up in Resolutions adopted by previous IPU Assemblies. Such issues include gender parity, implementation of the SDGs to address social inequalities, climate change issues, increasing youth participation at all levels in decision making positions and increasing the number of young Parliamentarians attending IPU Assemblies and human rights issues.
ITEM | ACTION | RESPONSIBILITY | TIMELINE | |
1. | Implementation of
Sustainable Development Goals |
Parliaments must continue raising awareness and ensuring that the SDGs are localised and implemented through the expanded SDGs Committee.
The gender dimension should be included. Issues of redressing inequalities as articulated |
SDGs Committee | The Committee must meet and draw up a Plan of Action |
by Goal Number 10 of the SDGs.
Allocating sufficient resources through the budget process. |
Committees on Public
Service, Labour and Social Welfare, Health and Child Care, Women Affairs, Gender and Economic Development, Education, Sport and Culture |
|||
2 | Promoting adolescent health | Enacting relevant laws Allocating sufficient resources through the budget process | The Portfolio
Committee on Health and Child Care to spearhead the process |
By December 2017 |
3 | Increasing Youth representation and participation in
Parliament |
Parliament must continue including Young Parliamentarians in delegations to international fora | Presiding Officers and Chief Whips | By December 2017 |
Advocating for youth quotas in Parliament by influencing Political Parties to include the youth as candidates during elections | Parliament to engage political parties
through their Chief Whips |
By December
2017 |
||
4 | Human Rights | Parliamentarians must protect human rights and be champions of upholding and defending Human Rights, speaking out where violations occur | AU, SADC
Parliamentarians |
By December
2017 |
Engage the Zimbabwe
Human Rights Commission (ZHRC) |
||||
5 | Combating effects of drought and famine | Prioritizing legislation that promotes food security and mitigation against drought and famine. | Portfolio Committee on Agriculture | By December
2017 |
6 | Learning Best Practices on topical issues | Parliament must continue engaging other Parliaments on best practices on topical issues, such as Climate Change, Women Participation in Politics and SDGs through exchange visits and capacity Building
Programmes. |
All Portfolio and
Thematic Committees to include the issues in their Work Plans |
By December
2017 |
HON. RUNGANI: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. CHAKONA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 15th March, 2018
On the motion of HON. RUNGANI seconded by HON.
CHAKONA, the House adjourned at Seventeen minutes to Five o’clock p.m.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Tuesday, 13th March, 2018
The National Assembly met at a Quarterpast Two o’clock p.m
PRAYERS
(THE HON. SPEAKER in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE HON. SPEAKER
PETITION RECEIVED FROM THE CENTRE FOR NATURAL
RESOURCE GOVERNANCE
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have to inform the House that on Friday, 2nd March, 2018, Parliament of Zimbabwe received a petition from the Centre for Natural Resource Governance (CNRG), supported by its partners in civil society, beseeching Parliament to intervene and ensure the protection of freedom of movement and protection of the rights of the people of Mukwada and Chiadzwa Wards which fall under Chief Marange. The petition has since been referred to the Portfolio Committees on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs and Mines and
Energy.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): I move that
Order Number 1of the Day be stood over until Order Number 2 of the
Day has been disposed of.
Motion put and agreed to.
SECOND READING
ELECTORAL AMENDMENT BILL [H. B. 6, 2017]
Second Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Second
Reading of the Electoral Amendment Bill [H. B. 6, 2017].
HON. CROSS: Mr. Speaker Sir, I thought this afternoon I would make emphasis on the fact. I heard you on the radio this morning emphasising the importance of a free and fair election in 2018. What I want to do in just a few minutes is to tell this National Assembly why this is important. Zimbabwe has been in isolation for nearly 17 years. We have been subjected to restrictions from the Americans for the same period of time. The principal motivation of the international community in maintaining these restrictions has been the fact that they have, year after year, election after election declared, that our elections were not free and fair for one reason or another.
I think that we have to recognise that we simply cannot put out economy back on its feet if we do not have a legitimate Government. Zimbabwe today has external obligations exceeding $11 billion and domestic obligations exceeding $7 billion. Combined, this is $18 billion.
This debt hangs over us and simply too much for us to manage.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. Hon. Mliswa and a few
others, reduce your voices. This Bill affects everyone here present. So, please listen.
HON. CROSS: This overhang of debt Mr. Speaker basically inhibits recovery because the international community requires that we service our obligations before new financing can be made available. It is virtually impossible in the modern world today to get your economy back on its feet without access to the international market for funding.
If you take a country like China, China in building its economy which is today worth about a $100 trillion, has borrowed in excess of $250 trillion from the international market. They have done that at interest rates amounting to one or two percent per annum. Floating around the world today is about $100 trillion of loose cash for which there is no outlet. The people who hold these vast resources are anxious to invest in places which are safe, where they can feel they can get a return and where their money ultimately can be recovered to them. We pay in excess of 1215% or even 20% per annum for funding here.
I have been in business for more than 50 years. You cannot run a business at 15 or 20% interest. It is not possible. You cannot make enough money to service those debts. At 1 or 2% interest per annum you can do just about anything, and the Chinese miracle has been built on cheap financing from the international market. Unless we get ourselves back into that position so that we can access that sort of funding, you can forget any economic recovery in Zimbabwe and the only way to do that is a free and fair election.
I believe the President; Hon. E.D Mnangagwa understands that perfectly, because he has been saying this for a long time now. I remember in 2017, about the middle of the year, when I had a conversation with him and he said to me we have to have a free and fair election. I was shocked because I felt that he had little chance of winning a free and fair election because he is opposed by everybody; G40, Joyce Mujuru, now the Mugabes, MDC and – [Laughter.] – despite that, he has stuck to his guns and I respect him for that enormously. You can see the reaction of the international community already. The flights from Johannesburg to Harare are full. You have to book a seat on a plane two to three days in advance. I understand during the first two months of this year 49 000 business visitors from overseas came to
Zimbabwe.
The American Ambassador says he cannot handle the enquiries that he is receiving from the United States. I personally have been involved in the negotiation of contracts worth nearly $3 billion in the last two months. This is a sign Mr. Speaker Sir, that the international community is responding to something. What they are responding to is the commitment by this Government to a free and fair election. We in the opposition, the MDCT have never asked for anything more. We just want a level playing field, the opportunity to put our case in front of the people and let the people decide who will form the Government.
In the past 17 years I have been in the trenches in the opposition, and I can tell you we have been beaten, killed, murdered in accidents and have had one person abducted per day since 2000. Nearly 5 000 people of the MDC structures has been abducted, that is one person per day for 17 years and – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – Mr. Speaker Sir, my colleagues on the other side are claiming that I am not speaking the truth. Mr. Speaker, you know me better than that. If my colleagues want a list of those people abducted, together with their identity numbers and dates on which they were abducted and what happened to them, I can provide them. Mr. Speaker Sir, I am prepared to provide that list to the media and it is not mythological but the problem is because of this sorty of activity which is basically on attack on democracy. The international community sees these activities, receive the reports from us and declare the election subsequently illegitimate.
Mr. Speaker, this Bill is of vital importance. I support it 100%. It is not enough Hon. Minister and you know that. This will not deliver a free and fair election on its own. We need to do more, but what every Member in this House needs to understand is that Zimbabwe today, 38 years after independence is poorer than it was at independence. I said last night in radio interview that my generation, your generation, our generation, has failed Zimbabwe because we are going out leaving behind a country which is poorer, more marginalised, more isolated than at any time independence.
The only way out of this cage is a free and fair election. What I would ask the Minister to do is to scrutinise the legislation that is in front of this House today. We will support it as the opposition but we will ask for changes, he needs to understand that on its own, this is not going to deliver a free and fair election. Time is running out and I believe that the election will be on the 17th August, 2018. It is not that I
am a n’anga and I can see into the future, that is one weekend after the heroes day and it is three days or four days before the deadline runs out and that is six months from now. We have got a lot of work to do in order to ensure that in 2018, the people of Zimbabwe are given a chance to elect the people that they want to lead them into the future. I believe that for the first time...
Hon. Tshuma and Hon. Mliswa having been talking
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, Hon. Tshuma and Hon. Mliswa,
can you listen?
HON. CROSS: I believe that for the first time, nearly two thirds of the voters roll is going to be under 35 years of age. This is going to be a young person’s election. What I hope Mr. Speaker Sir, is that those young people who put their faith in democracy by registering to vote, will in fact be rewarded by being given an opportunity to vote in a free and fair election.
I just want to say to my colleagues, that if we fail to deliver a free and fair election, the consequences for us as a nation are going to be severe because the international community will react with anger. They have the started to put their trust in our new Government and I believe that trust is justified because I know the man who is making those undertakings. If we as a nation fail to deliver these undertakings to our people, I fear for the future for every young person in Zimbabwe. Thank you Mr. Speaker.
ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE HON. SPEAKER
JOINT SITTING RULES
THE HON. SPEAKER: I wish to inform the House that the proposed joint sitting rules of Parliament were circulated through the Hon. Members’ pigeon holes. Hon. Members are requested to submit inputs to the Counsel to Parliament by Thursday 22nd March, 2018.
HON. P. D. SIBANDA: Thank you Hon. Speaker for allowing me to also add my input into this Bill which speaks to the manner in which elections in this country should be managed. I speak not only as a citizen but also as an interested party in the forthcoming elections. My debate will be informed by history as much as it will also be informed by the desire to have a free and fair election. As has been mentioned by the previous speakers, there can never be a situation where it is said that the electoral playing field is level if we do not speak about access to media coverage by all political players in a fair manner.
When I refer to the media in this instance, I refer to State owned public media. I am not going to dwell much on private media because like any other private enterprise, they are a profit making entity. Therefore, anything that they will cover will be aimed at ensuring that they earn a profit, but for State owned enterprises, these are public entities which are sucking from public funds and therefore, the need for them to serve the public in an equal manner is desirable and critical.
During the days of the former President of this country, President R. G. Mugabe, especially in his final days, public media was known to cover prominently two people at the expense of everyone else. These two people were always Cde. R. G. Mugabe or Cde. Grace Mugabe. Those were the people that were prominently covered at any moment in the public media of this country. We know that everywhere Cde. Mugabe went or his wife went, ZBC would send outside broadcasting vehicles to go and beam to the whole nation what will be taking place live and at the expense of the tax payer.
After the removal of President Mugabe, we thought that things were going to change and we expected that in terms of media coverage, we will see at least a fair manner of coverage of all citizens of this country without giving prominence to certain particular individuals. However, as we currently speak, if statistics can be taken we will find that the State media, ZBC included has covered President E. D. Mnangagwa and his wife more than they have been covering anybody or any institution in this country.
Last week as I was driving towards Bulawayo, I met three OB vehicles for ZBC that were coming from covering President Mnangagwa and they were also coming from covering his wife. So, it means that we have not moved from the previous dispensation. We continue to have
State media that covers one person and his wife. – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] So, Hon. Speaker, what we have done from the previous dispensation in terms of media coverage is to remove a mask and we continue to portray things in the manner that they used to be.
We have seen cameo coverage of the opposition leadership. We have seen cameo coverage of the leadership of the opposition and the other political players. If you analyse the cameo coverage, you will realise that the coverage is usually in the negative rather than in the positive. So, that is a sign that the editorial trajectory Hon. Speaker, has not changed. Our media still remains entrenched in the politics of one political party called ZANU PF, which Zimbabweans think cannot lead to a level playing field in our elections.
Hon. Speaker, we expect ZBC to one day take their outside broadcasting vehicles to a rally that is being held by Mai Mujuru, Hon. Chamisa – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – by any political party of this country. It is only under those circumstances Hon. Speaker, where we can see any – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible
interjections.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. If you have your opinions, the floor is yours after he has spoken – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] –
HON. P. D. SIBANDA: Thank you Hon. Speaker. What I am saying is that when President E. D. Mnangagwa came into power, he promised every Zimbabwean that he was going to change things. We do not believe that his promises are merely rhetoric, we believe that it is within his powers to implement the promises that he has given to Zimbabweans. Zimbabweans want to equally see President Mnangagwa as much as they want to see President Chamisa – [HON. MEMBERS:
Inaudible interjections] – so that when they are going to make – [HON.
MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. The Hon. Member should
not get confused by the title. You should have qualified to say, President of the MDCT, there are no two presidents in the Republic of
Zimbabwe.
HON. P. D. SIBANDA: Let me qualify Hon. Speaker. The coverage that is given by the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation
(ZBC) to President Mnangagwa is not only done in his title as the State President, it is also done in his capacity as President of ZANU PF. So, I am equating these two presidents – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible
interjections.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. A leader of a party that is not in Government cannot be equated to a leader who is the Head of State. That distinction must be made. Do not try to justify or else I am going to ask you to sit down.
HON. P. D. SIBANDA: I accept Hon. Speaker. Let me qualify.
Hon. Speaker, if we were to follow on the promises that were given by President E.D. Mnangagwa during his times of coming into power, he assured Zimbabweans that he will try to govern in a transparent manner that favours every Zimbabwean. Therefore, as we are heading for elections, I anticipated that the law will emphasise that the amount of coverage that is given to one political party, whether that party is small or big, in Government or not, it should be fair and equal. There should be an element of equity.
Hon. Speaker, what is the importance of that? It is to give the Zimbabwean citizens a fair assessment, a platform upon which they can assess the leadership qualities of the various leaders who would want to assume the position of State President. There should not be an unfair advantage to one of the participants because the idea is not really about having a President headed by one or another political party but the idea is to have a Zimbabwean President who is going to adhere to the desires, the interests and future desires of Zimbabweans. So, in order for us to be able to do that, we should be able to say all these Zimbabwean leaders vying for various political offices should be given equal access to the media; the slots should be equal so that Zimbabweans can be able to compare them in their multiplicity of ideas and promises that they have. This is also so that Zimbabweans can be able to say; the promises that are coming from this leader are better than the promises coming from that other leader. Hon. Speaker, we do not want a scenario where 90% of media coverage is going to a certain individual, thereby giving that individual an unfair advantage over others. We need to ensure that the playing field is indeed level in all practical instances.
Secondly Hon. Speaker, I anticipated this law to look at the deployment of soldiers in communities. Hon. Speaker, I was in Binga on Friday. I do not want to talk about somewhere else, let me talk about the constituency from which I come from. I went there with the Portfolio Committee on Health and Child Care to conduct public hearings. During that meeting, as some people were introducing themselves, I can give you an example of two soldiers who introduced themselves as peasant farmers. The reason why they introduced themselves as peasant farmers is because amongst the audience in that meeting, they knew them as members of the Zimbabwe’s military who have been in the communities for over two to three years whilst they are withdrawing salaries from the Ministry of Defence. The audience knows these people as individuals. These are soldiers deployed in the community.
Hon. Speaker, for record purposes, I actually spoke to the former Minister of Defence, Hon. Sydney Sekeramayi sometime last year but one and I gave him a list of soldiers deployed in our communities in Binga North Constituency. They have no other role that they are doing except to be going around intimidating citizens to conduct themselves – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – in a manner that suits a political party. Hon. Speaker, I have got the names with me. If it is the desire of this House, we can produce the names and ID Numbers because these are people who live in our communities. They are our own brothers and sisters, one of them is actually my own brother’s son and these soldiers have been deployed there to harass people in the communities – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – We therefore demand without apology that those people should go back to the barracks and leave the community to make a free and fair choice on which leaders they want to see in the next Parliament and Government. We need that Hon. Speaker – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible
interjections.] – We are not going to be silent.
Even as the election monitors come into this country Hon. Speaker, it will be very embarrassing for us to go and show them individuals in their homesteads and say, ‘this one is a soldier, this is their service number and so on’. Those people are withdrawing salaries from the Government for purposes of only intimidating members of the community to decide in the forthcoming elections in a particular manner. We cannot tolerate that to continue Hon. Speaker. Let us withdraw those people to come out from wherever they are deployed in the communities. Let them go back to the barracks, put on uniforms and leave the civilians to campaign and do their politics – [HON.
MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – in a manner that does not intimidate. Those people are deployed to intimidate and ensure that the distribution of inputs and whatever welfare items given to the people is done in a particular manner.
In the districts, they are deployed deliberately by particular Government offices such as the office of the District Administrator and the office of Social Welfare. They are deployed deliberately to ensure that the distribution is taken towards a certain or particular political inclination. I have got an incident in Binga Hon. Speaker where I went at a Grain Marketing Board depot where seed maize was being distributed and the soldiers were the ones doing the distribution. I went to the Manager of GMB; Hon. Speaker, I am talking about specific incidents and the truthfulness of this can actually be checked. I saw the manager and asked him whether the people that were doing the distribution worked for GMB and he said no, they do not. I then asked him why he was allowing them to do the distribution and he said he had been instructed by the District Administrator.
Why would the D.A have to instruct soldiers that are deployed in various communities, including in Siyabwa where I come from to go 100 km away and distribute inputs? Is the GMB or the Government short of staff to deploy temporarily for that basis? The answer lies in the fact that this is an effort to try and manipulate the results of the elections so that when people vote, they should vote in a manner that is predetermined.
Finally Hon. Speaker, on ZEC we believe that ZEC should be truly independent in word and indeed. It cannot remain an institution that is independent only in word but dependent when it comes to the deed. For example, the nation has not yet received a true and honest explanation on how Justice Makarau resigned from ZEC. There are a lot of questions that are surrounding her resignation. Does this have to do with a new dispensation, does it have to do with the fact that Justice Makarau was going to be a fair arbitter in the running of elections or does it have to do with the fact that the new dispensation thinks Justice Makarau was going to rig elections or the other way round that Justice Makarau would not comply with the pressure to rig elections from the current dispensation. So, we need an explanation. Hon. Speaker, these things should be explained.
I am not so sure why we continue to keep military and security personnel in ZEC. We believe that they need to be cleansed. What are we afraid of, why not retire them, we are retiring every other civil servants. Retire them, pay them off and we put in civilians to run that electoral board.
Finally, I hope that this law will deal with transparency in the production of ballot materials. If indeed we want to run a free and fair election, let us be open to everyone and say this is where we want to produce our ballot papers. They should not remain the preserve and secret of one political party. We should do that in a transparent manner so that when we go to the ballots, we will not have these mysterious statements about an X being put there and then suddenly appearing on another political party. For us to beat these mysterious allegations, we need to ensure that the law provides for a transparent production of ballot papers so that all parties are happy to say we know where the ballot papers were produced and definitely that these ballot papers are as they appear when it comes to the election day.
*HON. CHINOTIMBA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I want to add
my voice on this Bill. It is a very pertinent Bill but the issue of media; it is not about the State media only. Yes, the State media can be bad but media is media whether it is State or private. The private media, when it is only focusing on one thing, for example studio 7, I listen to it but it does not talk any good about the country or the ruling party. Studio 7 only talks about the party which Hon. Chamisa is leading. Zimbabwe should hold free and fair elections but if we have private media in Zimbabwe only focusing on the opposition yet they want the State media to talk about Zimbabwe, I do not think it is fair.
In English we say Charity begins at home; in my constituency, a brother of mine passed away, Mr. Tsvangairayi. At his funeral, the media was harassed when they wanted to capture the violence that was prevailing. The media wanted to capture Hon. Khupe when she was about to be burnt in the house. So, I do not know how the opposition wants the media to cover their stories. If they would have allowed the media to capture Hon. Khupe taking refuge in a hut, the nation would have appreciated that charity begins at home indeed. There is no free and fair election if people cannot do free and fair election in their own part.
If my young brother, Hon. Chamisa wants things to be good on his party, he must first of all chastise his people and the party’s allied media so that people will appreciate his leadership instead of scaring people away.
*HON. MURAI: Thank you Hon. Speaker. My point of Order is that what can we do in this House if someone is going crazy? Should we just leave them going astray like that? Now, we do not understand the line of his story – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.]
*THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order! The Chair does not see anyone who is not feeling well here.
*HON. CHINOTIMBA: Hon. Speaker, it is very painful to see our State media being harassed. The State media wanted to cover the demonstrations that were taking place at Town House where the ZBC vehicle was burnt. If vehicles are burnt, cameras destroyed, so what do they want the State media to do? So, this issue of elections cannot be free and fair if people come from Harare to attack people in Bulawayo. The people who went to Bulawayo, we never heard any Ndebele name; they were all Shona names. People were sent to go and murder and at the same time that party says we want free and fair elections; the people who murder people.
Mr. Speaker, we want to talk justice here, as Parliamentarians, when we are in this House, we should debate how to panel beat the Bill. In this House, Members of Parliament on your left are not debating but campaigning. There are no members of the public in this House; we only have Parliamentarians. The public is out there in the constituencies. If they are campaigning here, they are making a mistake. Their mistake; I think you heard them referring to soldiers, soldiers do not stay in barracks because it shows that the Hon. Member does not know the work of the soldiers. There are thieves and cattle rustlers; the duty of the soldier is to maintain peace and order in the country.
I think these Hon. Members should ask what soldiers are supposed to do. They should ask us who were soldiers before, how soldiers work. I was at Inkomo Barracks, I was allowed to go and live with people in the rural areas or in Kuwadzana. You cannot say that you have seen Chinotimba in Kuwadzana, what is he doing, he should go back to the barracks; no. He could have gone to build his house; he cannot be stopped because he is in uniform.
In Binga, we know that there are murderers and soldiers should stay there. In Mutare, we have matsanga from Mozambique….
HON. P. D. SIBANDA: On a point of order. Hon. Speaker, I find it very offensive for one Hon. Member that has been alleged to have murdered a person in his own life to stand up here and say kuBinga kune mabhinya therefore masoja should be sent. I am sure every community is known through something but obviously the community of Binga is not known for murderous conducts. It is not the responsibility of soldiers to arrest murderers. I think the Hon. Member should withdraw his statement which seeks to insinuate that we deserve to have soldiers in our Community because he thinks we are murderers.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Chinotimba, I think you need to withdraw the issue yemabhinya kuBinga.
*HON. CHINOTIMBA: Mr. Speaker, I withdraw. Mr. Speaker, this country, I am perplexed, we know that we are under sanctions in this country but you find that my relative called for those sanctions on me. As Parliamentarians here, we wish that for our country to move forward, we should collectively denounce the Whites who placed us under sanctions. What we are saying is that sanctions should be removed, which were brought by the Whites. We were not placed under sanctions by the Black people; the Africans.
I watched the South African Parliament and I saw a White man saying past is past; people should be given their land….
HON. GONESE: On a point of order. Mr. Speaker Sir, Hon.
Chinotimba is making allegations against White people, we have got White Zimbabweans here. If he is talking about other people from other countries, his statement is not clear when he just says White people, vachena, this means White people. In our Constitution, we have got a specific provision against discrimination on the basis of race, tribe and other grounds.
I believe that it is not Parliamentary for the Hon. Member to be making statements which can be misconstrued as violating the provisions of the Constitution, relating to discrimination of people of a certain race or tribe.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order, what the Hon. Member is saying or talking about are White people who have imposed sanctions and it is common cause that the White people who imposed sanctions on
Zimbabwe are well known.
*HON. CHINOTIMBA: Mr. Speaker, each time when we refer to issues that impact negatively on our country, they stand up and oppose but when they are talking, we do not disturb them. We wait to be given a chance so that we give each other opportunity without any interjections. I support the Bill, that it should proceed like that. The truth of the matter is that State media should cover freely without any intimidation or fear or any interference from political parties.
Even in ZANU PF, if media arrives, even if they are private, they should not be intimidated. Even on the opposition, if it is State or private media they should not be intimidated. Allow them to do their job. We do not want people who want to hinder when they are flighting negative news because it is not proper. Then we go about and say we want free and fair elections when free and fair elections were not done by the opposition party. She was harassed as the Vice President of the MDC, now she does not move freely because she is afraid. My opponents should know where to start and where to end. I thank you. HON. KANENGONI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I would like to add my voice to the Electoral Amendment, together with the rest of the Hon. Members that have spoken here today. We are living in an exciting time in Zimbabwe that everyone is referring to as a new dispensation. In the spirit of a new dispensation, I think all Hon. Members who are the first Hon. Members of the new dispensation must be excited to bring in positive change as far as elections are concerned. It is not a matter of which political party you belong to. It is a matter of what type of Zimbabwean you want to be in this new dispensation.
We have young people who want to come into politics and this is our opportunity to show them what politics can do in terms of the change that Zimbabwe can bring and what type of future Zimbabweans can have. If we start the new dispensation with violence, then it is no longer a new dispensation, it is just a dispensation. If we start the new dispensation by victimizing each other, by going into each other’s constituencies and down playing each other, and not giving the electorate an opportunity to chose whoever they please, then it is not in the spirit of the new dispensation.
His Excellency, the President, Hon. E. D. Mnangagwa spoke about letting bygones be bygones in his speech. If we do not embody what His Excellency is saying, there is no way we will ever see positive change. This Bill will always be on paper but the reality of it will be in our actions and how we handle ourselves as Hon. Members of this august House. If we lead by example, the State media will follow and those who are coming will follow. It will not even be an issue of debate as to how elections should be conducted.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I am very excited to be part of a House that is open to debating and discussing how exactly we envision our country to be. If we come in here and do not practice what we preach, we are going nowhere. We are going to end up exactly where we were. I see this as a turning point for our country. This is the turning point for anything and everything positive that is to come. There are some Hon. Members here who might be choosing to resign from politics because they have been in politics for a very long time. Their resignation must not be a resignation where they go and then suffer and wish they had not done that and paved way for others. It must be a turning point where they feel that they are handing over and they are now having an opportunity to enjoy the Zimbabwe they have always wanted to enjoy.
Mr. Speaker Sir, when we talk about going to elections and when we talk about voter registration, we are saying there is a new system in place, the electronic BVR registration where everybody has the opportunity to start anew. We were very happy that extensions were given for people to register to vote so that they can practice their democratic right. If they register to vote and they are not allowed to vote for whom they want or if people are blocked from the opportunity to stand in their constituencies and if social media is used to rubbish other people like lists that are circulating now volunteering people to political parties they do not belong to, is that the spirit of the new dispensation? Mr. Speaker Sir, I would really like us to be able to lead by example. Let us not be afraid to contest against each other. Competition must be healthy, whether it is intraparty or inter party. It must be healthy competition that leads to the same thing; a better Zimbabwe and a good representation, good politicians that can genuinely work for their people and can see development in their lifetime. Mr. Speaker Sir, I really hope that we can move forward in a genuine spirit of wanting the
2018 election to go well. Thank you very much.
+HON. D. SIBANDA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I want to take this opportunity to add my voice on the Electoral Amendment Bill. There are a few things that I want to highlight what I feel needs to be corrected on this Amendment Bill. Mr. Speaker, I want to talk about the Police. I think it would be best if they can be given an opportunity to vote for their leader freely. Most of the times, they are asked to vote using the postal vote and the results are not very clear. If only the policemen, soldiers, those who are in the diaspora, those who are in hospitals and the prisoners could be allowed to come out and vote for the leaders that they want.
Mr. Speaker, most of the times there is disruption, violence and harassment as well, especially in rural areas. People in rural areas are intimidated by political parties that we know. In Zimbabwe we know that there is a political party that normally goes to rural areas to intimidate people. We would want to see that when we are coming up with this Bill, we need to highlight and correct that. When we look at the Constitution Mr. Speaker, it states that in Zimbabwe you are allowed to choose the leader that you want without being harassed or forced and also put on the clothes that you want, especially when you are campaigning. You are allowed to put on your party regalia in a free manner. This is what we are anticipating from the Electoral Amendment
Bill that it will allow all the Zimbabweans to do that.
Mr. Speaker, in my constituency which is in an urban area, I hear that there are places like Lupane, Nkayi and so on whereby they are saying there are people who walk around, go to their homes and ask for their serial numbers. I do not think this is something which is constitutional Mr. Speaker. It is the responsibility of the Government to really look into the issue and check with those who are making those allegations whether it is true or not. If true, those people who would have submitted their serial numbers should report to the Police. The BVR serial number is a secret document that one is not supposed to be given anyone. This is something that the Government should work together with the community.
Mr. Speaker, most of the times during elections we have observers. In my own view, I think as Zimbabweans we complain that we did not have free and fair elections. Why as Zimbabweans can we not have monitors? This is one thing that could assist when they identify that something is wrong they can quickly report and corrective measures taken, especially those who will be coming in to observe. Let us come up with a law or regulation that will allow anyone who wants to participate in that and not choose specific people that we want to come and be observers or monitors.
I was part of the delegation that travelled to Lesotho for election observation. I did not hear any place where any violence or harassment of the community people was reported. We never saw anyone being harassed or intimidated. We went right round Lesotho because it is a very small place. My wish is for us to copy from other countries and do like what they do, especially during elections.
Mr. Speaker, there are also transitional mechanisms. For example, in 2008 the results were delayed to be announced. It took about five to six weeks for the results to come out. We do not want that Mr. Speaker. We have to follow what the Constitution says, especially on the publishing of the election results. It says within five days the election results should be announced. This is one of the things that we should correct and as Government, we should really work on that so that it does not take us back.
Before I sit down, there is also an issue to do with ZEC. This is one thing that is troubling everyone; who selects and appoints them? these are the questions that we are asked by our constituents. The leadership of ZEC should be appointed due to their credentials. Even as Parliament, we do not even know, but Parliament should be involved and be in agreement with the Minister on the appointment of the leadership of ZEC. How was the leadership selected or appointed. We should have a transparent system on appointment of leaders. I thank you.
*HON. MANDIPAKA: Thank you Mr. Speaker for according me
this opportunity to add my voice on this debate in this House. I stood up after listening to Hon.P.D. Sibanda from Binga. I have a few words in response to what he was saying …
HON. P. D. SIBANDA: My point of order is, and I stand guided by the Chair on the basis of him responding to me. I do not know whether Standing Rules and Orders provide for honourable members to respond to other members?
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: The Hon. Member is right to
not really respond – [HON. P. D. SIBANDA: But that is what he said.] – any Hon. Member is free to look into what you have said and probably respond as he says.
*HON. MANDIPAKA: I am a bit sorry because listening to what the Hon. Members on your left are saying; it looks like they are afraid of what is going to happen, come election time. It shows that ZANU PF is going to win because what the members on your left want to say is that after elections they want to say that elections were not fair and free.
When you look at the politics in Zimbabwe, the party which is violent is MDCT. I say that because when Tsvangirayi was buried I was in that village and what I witnessed Mr. Speaker does not bring us out as people who always talk of peace and unity. Their Vice President, Hon. Khupe and Mwonzora had gone into a thatched hut where they risked being murdered but we have a party which preaches democracy, freedom of expression and about free and fair elections – [HON. MEMBERS:
Inaudible interjections.] – I think this party must relook at itself. …
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Mandipaka. Hon.
Ndebele, can you leave the Chamber please.
HON. NDEBELE: With people like this I had better go than stand people like this. I am leaving happily.
*HON. MANDIPAKA: What I am talking about Mr. Speaker is that if we want our elections to be credible we should say our deeds must be our words as well. That is what I am encouraging the MDCT party because they were talking about what is happening in ZANU PF.
Hon. Mnangangwa, the one who is leading this country, if he says we are now in a new dispensation I think he is genuine. What it means is that we should understand what he is saying and follow it as a nation because it will help us at election time. When we get to elections, people would be in peace and will be able to choose their representatives without any intimidation. What we want this House to know is that people talked of 100 Days, I do not think President Mnangagwa can turn around the economy of this country in 100 Days if it was not possible to do it in 37 years. What he is only saying is that he wants to show us that as citizens of this country this is what we should do and how to do it. If we take that and use of it, we will see change in our country slowly till we get to where we want to get to where our economy will be ticking.
In the whole world I have not seen a country where a leader of a nation can perform 100% even in America but leaders try to give direction to the people that they are leading. As a nation, we should help the leaders. For us to say that elections will not be free and fair, if we take that and use it, we will slowly see change in our country till we get to where we want to get to when our economy will be ticking. In the whole world, I have not seen a country where a leader of a nation can perform 100% even in America. Leaders try to give direction to the people that they are leading. As a nation, we should help the leaders. For us to say that the elections will not be free and fair, I think we are getting it wrong. I think the President as well has done a good thing by allowing observers from all the nations which never used to happen in the past.
So, we have countries from Europe and countries from the West where they are asked to come and observe our elections because everything is transparent. People get into ballot boxes and make their choices freely. There is nothing to be afraid of. Yes, they can be afraid because they know that ZANU PF is strong. There is the issue which has been talked about that ZBC should go out and get news. I did journalism Mr. Speaker. People look for news that is news to the nation. There are times when reporters do not flight news because it is not worth it. That is not an issue which should concern the President.
These reporters go there because of news. Our laws in this country do not prohibit our journalists to go and cover news anywhere. So, our laws are very good. They are free that even these political parties can pay the journalists so that they cover them. Our laws are transparent. If they are free, they can go and come up with news. Hon. Chinotimba talked about State and private media. We have seen that the private media is only focusing on one party. It is not covering all the parties. That is what happens in democracy as the opposition says. That is democracy that those who are private, independent and State controlled, I think that is the democracy that we want.
Mr. Speaker, what I want to say is that I am very sorry of what is going to happen after the elections. What it shows is that when the observers come, if ZANU PF wins, they will say that the elections were not free and fair. If you want to experiment it, if another party wins, they will say that the elections were free and fair. So, the definition of free and fair, we are not looking at it from the opposition party. I remember, I went to Madagascar with Hon. Khupe and as SADC, when we were defining free and fair elections, we were not looking at the ruling party that if it wins then we will say it is not free and fair. That is not how we do it. It is only here in Zimbabwe. I do not see where we had elections which were not declared free and fair. People from the SADC region come and endorse our elections as free and fair.
You can have pockets of violence here and there, but they are not the ones that determine the freeness and fairness. That is not the way it is done. I think we should really look at it and see what we mean by free and fair. I think in this House, we should be exemplary so that our people know that we have to live in peace.
If we talk negative about our country, we will destroy it. So, I think we should listen to President Hon. Mnangagwa and give heed to his plea for us to be united. I was reading in the newspaper and saw that he was pleading with the West to remove the sanctions because we are now living in a new dispensation. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
Some Hon. Members having stood up.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. MARUMAHOKO): I
thought I was clear when I said after Hon. Mandipaka, Hon. Chakona would follow. Hon. T. Dube, you have already spoken on this matter and so, you cannot debate twice.
HON. CHAKONA: Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. I would
like to contribute to the Bill on electoral reforms. I think we have a very simple problem in this nation. What we lack is basically light for us to be able to define where there is light and where there is darkness. I just want to quote John Chapter 1:Vs. 9. It says “The one who is true light, who gives light to everyone was coming into the world.” I think it is imperative that we understand where we came from, where we are and where we are going as a nation.
Mr. Speaker, on the 18th of November 2017, Zimbabweans came out in their millions to demonstrate and ask the former President to step down so that we can have a new dispensation in this nation. Here we are as parliamentarians who also sat on the 21st November, 2017 moving a motion on the impeachment of the former President. The whole reason was that we wanted light in our nation. We wanted a new dispensation in this country and that is what precisely happened. When somebody stands up in this august House and says what we lack in this nation is
legitimacy when in actual fact everything that happened, happened in terms of the Constitution of this nation. It is discouraging and disheartening.
We are a nation that is supposed to seek light, what is righteous for the people of Zimbabwe and what is good for the generations to come. That is what we are here to do. So, we have got a legitimate Government that is in power right now that was actually put into power in terms of the Constitution of this country. Therefore, the issue of legitimacy is not something to be debated. However, what we are looking for is basically electoral reforms that will drive towards a free, fair and credible election in this nation. I am sure what we need to do is to spend our energy and time on actually saying what is it that we need in order for us to attain or to have free, fair and credible elections.
Mr. Speaker, if we annex the economic recovery to free and fair elections, it is very unfortunate because this is a country that has had its elections consistently every five years in terms of the Constitution of this nation. Therefore, to say we are in this economic quagmire as a result of previous elections, I think it is unfortunate because we are in this economic situation because of sanctions and it is well known and it is a fact. When I observed the elections in the United States of America, there were two ultimate contestants and that was Hillary Clinton and the current President Donald Trump.
Mr. Speaker, after the elections, there were issues to do with some irregularities in that particular election with others alleging that Russians had something to do with the electoral process, but Hillary Clinton never requested for sanctions on the people of the United States of America
(USA). She accepted that she had lost the elections and that President Trump was the new President of America. In this country Mr. Speaker, if I lose elections, what I have to do is to go to other nations and say, I have lost elections and therefore bring sanctions to my nation. I think it is very unfortunate. Sorry for those who actually advocate for sanctions for this nation just because they would have lost elections.
Mr. Speaker Sir, what I think is imperative in our Electoral Amendment Bill is that we should deal with issues to do with violence, that which causes our elections not to be free, fair and credible. Another speaker spoke about abductions, I just calculated and said, If a person has been abducted every day for the past 17 years, it means we have got 6 205 people who have been abducted. Mr. Speaker, this is not true. As I speak today, who was abducted yesterday, who was abducted? We do not have that news. Rather, what we do have is, we have situations where in Masvingo Province, we have people who have invaded this province and are causing mayhem. They are raping and robbing people every day and killing them. We have thieves and robbers who have invaded our nation. What we should be saying here is that, ‘what is it that we can do so to protect our people so that they are not attacked by these kind of people other than attributing that to politics. I think it is more important for us to do that.
Mr. Speaker, I also have a constituency and in my constituency, we advocate for peace and we have been preaching peace. However, each time we distribute inputs, social welfare inputs or food stuffs and so on, the violence we find and get is coming from the opposition supporters – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] They are the ones who are causing problems in my constituency Mr. Speaker. I requested one journalist, Godwin Mangudya from the Voice of America, I said to him, ‘come to my constituency, I want you to record and get first hand information as to who is causing violence in my constituency and he ran away because he knew. You can call him; he can be contacted and called. I told him, ‘I want you to come and see who is causing problems in my constituency, it is the opposition supporters.’ That is a fact, and that is the truth as we can see and we have witnessed in this place.
Mr. Speaker, for your own information, we do not even have soldiers in my constituency, province or district who are campaigning for ZANU PF. We do not even have soldiers who are going to call people to vote for ZANU PF, we can campaign on our own. It is important that this Bill protects the people of Zimbabwe and the electoral system in our nation so that we can have free, fair and credible elections.
Lastly, Mr. Speaker, this nation – [HON. MARIDADI: On a point of order Mr. Speaker.] – we never stood up when you were debating, we never interrupted your debate. This is unfair Mr. Speaker, this is getting out of hand.
HON. MARIDADI: It is a point of order Mr. Speaker, because I am seated here and listening to his very interesting debate but I am also hearing people saying he has more than one identification certificate. Is it true that you have more than one identification certificate?
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon Maridadi – [HON.
MARIDADI: I was just trying to verify.] Hon. Maridadi, I was about to give you time to debate, so if you start your point of order which is not there, it is not fair – [HON. MARIDADI: I wanted to verify if he is a crook or not.] – Just take your seat – [HON. MARIDADI: I am really sorry Mr. Speaker. Thank you.]
HON. CHAKONA: Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. I just want to say, we happen to have some interaction with the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) and what we observed is that no one party could be happy with ZEC because we do not know what they are going to announce and we are very unsure as political parties. However, in as far as I am concerned, ZEC is a partial organisation that carries out its work professionally.
Lastly Mr. Speaker, our nation is made up of very literate people. Our statistics actually indicate that almost 98% of our population is literate, that they are able to read and write and they can be able to make informed decisions. It is therefore imperative Mr. Speaker, that no matter what people go through, they will be able to make their own independent decisions and I believe in as far as we are concerned, the upcoming elections will be free, fair and credible. In that regard Mr.
Speaker, I would like us to speak to the Bill and contribute towards what it is that can actually bring free, fair and credible elections into our nation. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
HON. J. TSHUMA: Thank you very much Hon. Speaker Sir, for affording me this opportunity to also add my voice on this very pertinent subject. Mr. Speaker Sir, they normally say that charity begins at home. I believe that as we look at amending this Electoral Act, we need to first start by amending our own thinking and looking into ourselves first as leaders of this beautiful nation Zimbabwe. We can talk about amending this Bill but the acts that we do down there totally contradict the spirit and meaning of a proper Electoral Amendment Bill.
Why do I say so, Mr. Speaker Sir? It is because we lack sincerity in trying to bring up Zimbabwe as a country. At times, we actually forget that Zimbabwe belongs to all of us regardless of which political party one comes from. The country which we are living in today is the same country Zimbabwe, which our next generation must also live, our children and their children.
How are we going to leave this country if we do not prepare adequately for it to be left in a very sound position? I say so because other Hon. Members here have already alluded to the fact that we are in a new dispensation very well, but whilst we are there, we have some prominent leaders who still want to pull us back to that era where we have run away from and then you ask yourself, are we being sincere or are we moving in the same direction?
I was so devastated when Parliament kept quiet when some of our Hon. Members whom we sit with here, were violently attacked and harassed. Nobody ever said anything about that. I was expecting the Leader of the House to probably issue a statement against such acts. We know Hon. Khupe had a tough time in Buhera and Bulawayo. She is a Member of Parliament and Parliament keeps quiet about that. It does not talk about it but then we are talking about amending the Electoral Act yet we are leaving things here undetermined.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I want to say that as we go through this process which is very noble, let us also have an amendment of our mindsets, the way that we want to carry ourselves and behave because at the end of the day, in Zimbabwe all due processes must be followed, we must respect whatever is happening in any other side but what I cry for is that when we go into these elections; if we go with that note of violence then how is the credibility of these elections going to be measured. Now, what is worrying is that, as leaders, we are failing to reign in on our people, instead we come here and want to pretend that everything is okay. People are going out and becoming violent because as leaders, we keep quiet, we do not condemn this in public and we do not live it. We are actually some of the perpetrators because we send these people out there, we give them money, we get them drunk in order that they go and carry out these acts of violence just because we are probably power hungry or whatever, I do not know.
Before we start to amend these things, let us look at ourselves and be sincere. I do not think there is anybody in this House who can volunteer their children to go out there and be in the forefront of violence but we are quick to make sure that other people’s children die for us, get maimed for us, how fair is that? Then we say we want to build a Zimbabwe or recognized by the whole world. How are we going to be recognized when we are still barbaric.
So, Mr. Speaker Sir, what I am trying to say is that let it begin with us as the leaders here in this august House. Let it begin with us here to condemn things that are not supposed to happen. Whether it is in MDC or in the new NPF part, it should never be allowed that leaders do things with impunity. We have had enough of that and these are the kind of things that are not going to bring Zimbabwe up, these issues will keep
America to continue putting sanctions on us yet we have changed. Our President has done everything to guarantee change. He has even said, we are free to open up our doors for UN, AU and SADC observers, anybody who wants to come to observe can come. Is that not change enough? If I remember well the last elections, all those organisations and people were not allowed to come into Zimbabwe but today they are allowed.
We are clean; we are coming to the table, us as leaders let us not spoil that. At the end of the day, we want to turn around and blame the President or the ruling party, it is not fair. Let us leave and walk the talk of saying we are democratic and free. If we are democratic and free, let us then make it transcend down to the people that we lead down there. Let us not come here and preach a different gospel yet when we go outside there, Nicodimously, we become animals and start attacking people. It is wrong and it is very unfair.
So, all I want to bring to this august House is that as we amend this thing, let us amend our brains, let us amend our actions as leaders. Let us be seen to be true leaders, not leaders who preach peace but practice violence. It is not fair for Zimbabweans and it can never build us as a nation. As we amend the Electoral Amendment Bill that we are talking about today, let us amend our brains and behaviour too. Thank you for affording me this opportunity to also add my voice to this motion.
HON. CHIMANIKIRE: Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank you for giving me this opportunity to add my voice to this proposed Amendment Bill, the Electoral Amendment Act. During the war of liberation, one of the major objectives of the war of liberation was one man one vote. Indeed, when we became independent in 1980, even those who were not registered voters but had National ID’s that showed that they belonged to this country were allowed to vote but alas, this is not the situation at the present moment.
If you look at the so called aliens who came to work in this country so many years ago, in the late 50’s and early 60’s, they were issued with National Identity cards that showed that they are in Zimbabwe and they are Zimbabweans but of alien origin. Come 2018 elections, they are not going to be allowed to vote. Although there was a slight dispensation which allowed some with long birth certificate; I do not know what a long birth certificate in this country is all about. Does your long birth certificate change your being alien or we have a skewed idea of what an alien should be. I think we should be very fair. If somebody was born in this country even of alien parentage but the mother or the father is a Zimbabwean, let us be fair and make sure we register them to vote. Whether they have a long or short birth certificate, it has nothing to do with their citizenship if those are the people who built our railway lines, if they are the people who built those high rise buildings that we witness in Harare today and who live in Rugare or Mbare but because they have a short birth certificate, they are not registered to vote.
When we look at some of the pronouncements I have been listening to, I was wondering whether we are still talking about the Electoral Act Amendment Bill because I never heard anybody talking about the provisions of POSA and AIPPA. Those are some of the legalities that restrict people from expressing themselves and associating freely when they are campaigning for political office. Mr. Speaker, I never had of anybody talking about lack to a provision to ensure that ZEC is adequately funded so that they are able to conduct elections and ensure free and fair elections.
Alas, Mr. Speaker, when we talk about the role of police in policing elections. In 2008, history has it that when people went to complain about political violence, no dockets were opened. Those stories are unrecorded but it is on record that over 200 people were murdered during the rerun of the elections. The former President is on record addressing a ZANU PF congress to say he lost the vote by 73% to the late Morgan Richard Tsvangirayi. He even went on to shout a slogan pasi ne ZANU PF; maybe he was even frustrated by his own party after having lost by 73%.
Mr. Speaker, people have stood up in this House to say there was no rigging and I wondered, a black pot calling another black pot black. They talked about violence in the MDC. If we go to Mutoko today, there is evidence of people who had their arms chopped off, short sleeve, long sleeve, it happened in this country within the borders of the country when we move in from Nyamapanda area. However, we seem to pretend that it never happened. It happened in this country and that must stop. The provisions of any Bill must ensure that if we are going to have free and fair elections we had NIKUV employed by the registrar’s office when it was responsible for registering voters. Now I understand they have been fired and another company has been employed but the irony of the situation Mr. Speaker is that we have a Palestinian Embassy in this country. However, we employ Israelis to come and spoil issues for us, to come and rig our elections. Let alone US$10 million was recovered when the new dispensation was being introduced and we understand there were Israelis defending that US$10 million in some private member’s house. Let us not actually close our eyes to reality. Sometimes some of the things that we have done in this country make us feel ashamed as Zimbabweans because some of the things, we could have avoided and some of the things can be avoided.
Mr. Speaker, when you put a ruling party into power for over 37 years and you have junior doctors going on strike for the past 20 years each and every year, is that competence? That is incompetence. Just last night I was listening to the news that people are being turned away from hospitals, some wards have been closed but no permanent solution is being found. What about the new dispensation? Is it our entry into the new dispensation that some people should be turned away to go back home and die; so that we move forward to have free and fair elections or immediate action should be taken to ensure that we are an effective and efficient Government that is able to look after its own people. Mr. Speaker, the issue of distribution of rice and maize on a partisan basis, is it gotten rid of in this Bill so that when we have electoral processes, we know that people are not going to be influenced because of receiving cups of rice.
Recently, we had a court case that was going through the courts in Kwekwe, where an Hon. Member admitted that over 30 tonnes of maize he was actually storing had been issued to him by the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare so that when we go towards elections, he can start distributing out to voters. Mr. Speaker, we need a law to prevent such things to happen in our country and this Bill should cover some of those areas where we have such errors which are still being used.
There is the issue of chiefs and headmen; it is not included in this Bill, where they are asking people to bring their serial number for your voter registration so that we can record it down so that we will know how you are going to vote. Although that is speculative but however, the law should ensure that – it is not good enough to just issue statements and say it is illegal; the law should actually prohibit that. They are violating the Constitution and no action is taken. The Constitution is very clear about traditional leaders that they are not allowed to be partisan, let alone to be sloganeering about any other party. They should be impartial but however they are allowed to vote.
Mr. Speaker, this Bill still misses out these omissions because once we have a Constitution stipulating what is supposed to happen; what is supposed to happen then is to make sure that we put in laws. So, the amendment of this Bill should also be covering issues like that so that
we have a free and fair election. There is also victimisation of nurses and teachers. It is not covered in this Bill. These are people – I was actually in Rushinga just prior to the previous 2013 elections, when one of the teachers was made to pack up and go home instead of being a polling officer, simply because it was suspected that he was a supporter of the opposition. Some of these issues need to be included in the Bill so that it is all encompassing and at the same time it ensures we move towards the new dispensation.
As we talk about moving towards the new dispensation, let us take note that we are asking for Diaspora remittances. Diaspora remittances but not Diaspora voters. How are we trying to put our wishes and desires in this country if you want a dollar from the Diaspora, so you must be able to give the vote to the diasporans. We have embassies in most countries and people should be voting in those embassies but we have not allowed them to register to vote and we are not allowing them to go and vote and yet it is reported that we have got over 3 million voters; Zimbabweans outside this country who are supposed to vote, yet no President has won this election since 1980 with 3 million votes. In other words, we have another full country outside this country with the amount of voters that could vote out a President who has been in power for the past 37 years.
Mr. Speaker, let us face reality and let us not shout about violence that took place three weeks ago, when we have been under bondage as the opposition party with violence being meted out to us for the past 37 years. I am a living witness. I have gone to prison several occasions and yet I am not a criminal, all because I was carrying out activities as a member of the opposition. I would like to thank you for this opportunity and hope that when the Bill goes through, it will be all encompassing and also AIPPA and POSA will be repealed so that we will have a better Zimbabwe. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND INFRASTRURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO): I move that the debate do now adjourn.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 14th March, 2018.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND INFRASTRURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO): I move that Order of the
Day, Number 3 be stood over until the rest of the Orders of the Day have been disposed of.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
FIRST REPORT OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON
TRANSPORT AND INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT
ON THE FAMILIARISATION TOUR OF VICTORIA FALLS
AND HARARE AIRPORTS AND THE PLUMTREEMUTARE
ROAD PROJECT
Fourth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the First Report of the Portfolio Committee on Transport and Infrastructural Development on the Familiarisation Tour of Victoria Falls and Harare Airports and the Plumtree Mutare Projects.
Question again proposed.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND INFRASTRURAL
DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO): Thank you Mr.
Speaker Sir. Mr. Speaker, I stand to respond to the Committee’s observations on the topic you have just read. I would like to thank you for affording me the opportunity to respond to the report of a familiarisation tour of Victoria Falls and Harare Airport and the PlumtreeMutare road projects which was undertaken by the Portfolio
Committee on Transport and Infrastructural Development.
I would like to thank the Committee for their report. The Ministry notes the observations and recommendations made by the Committee and hereby response as follows:
At the time that the Committee produced their report, the
observed that disbursements to Victoria Falls town stood at $58 000. The Committee expressed the view that this was insignificant, given the work that needed to be done. I am pleased to inform the House that the
current disbursement for Victoria Falls town stands at $901 680. The Committee also noted that the funds disbursed to Marondera
Municipality was not enough. In 2017, $2.8 million was disbursed to the said municipality and 36 km of road was resealed. The Committee also pointed to the issue of mistrust and suspicion between the City of
Harare and
ZINARA. The relationship between ZINARA and the City of Harare has improved as reflected by the $14.9 million which was disbursed to the city in 2017 for road maintenance.
It is also important to note that funding for road maintenance and most road authorities is not adequate due to the mismatch between
required budgets to rehabilitate the road network which is estimated at
$5 billion against ZINARA annual average collection of $200 million.
the Committee observed that Government, through my Ministry, instructed ZINARA to take over the construction of Airport road after the City of Harare failed to undertake the project. Indeed, phase one of the Airport road dualisation project was completed by the Department of Roads at a cost of $16.2 million and 9.2 km was achieved. The feasibility studies for Phase 2 are in progress and will be completed soon.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee highlighted the fact that City of Harare took over the collection of billboard fees on Airport Road without consulting ZINARA. It is our considered view that since the road belongs to the Department of Roads, they should collect all billboard fees and use the proceeds to maintain the road. Consultations are already underway with the City of Harare with a view to finding an amicable solution. Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee observed that an
800m section of the Plumtree – Mutare Road as we approach the Forbes Border Post had not been completed by the contractors. At the time that the Committee undertook the tour, this section of the road had indeed not been completed. I am happy to report that the 800m section of the road was rehabilitated at a cost of $1.1 million and is now complete and open to traffic.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee observed that Goromonzi Tollgate was still collecting toll fees manually. The tollgate in question as opened in September 2014 and commenced operations from a temporary structure. Mr. Speaker Sir, Goromonzi Tollgate was fully computerized in 2016 and this resulted in a marked increase in revenue collection.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee made the observation that there was no signage on the Harare to Mutare Road. This observation may have been true at the time that the tour was undertaken. I wish to inform the House that SADC signs have now been fully installed on the entire network since this was part of the agreement. The Committee further pointed out that it appeared as if Intertoll was not maintaining the road as evidenced by the tall grass along the road. Representations have been made to Intertoll and they are now carrying out routing maintenance on the road.
The Committee, Mr. Speaker Sir, further pointed out to the fact that there was no perimeter fence on the Plumtree – Mutare highway. The contract agreed at the time did not include erection of the perimeter fence as part of the project. I am however happy to report that perimeter fencing has been erected on the Gweru to Bulawayo section of the road by the Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe as part of their road safety campaigns. The Council is now working on the Bulawayo – Plumtree section which we are hoping to commission soon.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the report of the Committee alluded to the fact that the rehabilitation of the road had increased traffic in Rusape Town. The Committee has expressed the view that the increased traffic necessitated the installation of more traffic lights in the town. I wish to inform the House that two sets of robots were installed in Rusape in 2017 and have assisted in the management of traffic.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee further pointed out that Urban Councils did not get the graders that ZINARA gave to rural local authorities. The Committee further pointed out that ZINARA bought the equipment without consulting the road authorities. Road authorities including urban councils will benefit from the $28 million availed in the 2018 ZINARA Budget for equipment procurement. Mr. Speaker Sir, I am informed that consultations were done before the graders were bought.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee observed that Mutare RDC was sharing one grader with the Department of Roads and DDF. It cannot be true that these road authorities are sharing a single grader. Each of them received a grader from ZINARA in 2013. Mr. Speaker Sir, there was a further observation to the effect that ZINARA is disbursing funds for routine maintenance only and no funds are being availed for periodic works, including regravelling. ZINARA is disbursing funds to cover both routine and periodic maintenance works, including emergency works as guided by the Roads Act.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee made an important observation that carriageway markings were wrongly done on the Christmas Pass section of the road. They expressed the view that the double lanes should have been on the side of traffic going to Mutare to allow fast moving vehicles to overtake heavy trucks but the opposite was done. Mr. Speaker Sir, the observation by the Committee was indeed correct and the carriageway markings have been corrected. The Committee also observed that the same section of the Christmas Pass was slippery during the rainy season and bleeding in hot weather, causing a lot of accidents. This anomaly has since been corrected through the application of 7mm stones.
The above observations point to poor workmanship by the contractor and poor supervision by the Ministry of Transport. Mr. Speaker Sir, for future projects, strict monitoring mechanisms will be put in place to ensure that we are not confronted by these embarrassing situations.
The Committee also observed that there was congestion at Forbes Border Post. The Border Post was decongested by the rehabilitation of the 800m section of the road which has now been opened to traffic. It was further observed that toll plazas operated by Intertoll could not identify Government vehicles for exemption purposes, thereby causing unnecessary delays. Mr. Speaker Sir, the issue is being attended to and is work in progress. I would want to assure the House that it will be concluded soon.
The Committee highlighted the problem of poor drainage system at
Chicken Inn Shop in Chegutu along the Harare to Bulawayo Road. Mr. Speaker Sir, a culvert with a bigger pipe is required to improve the drainage system at this place, hence there is interface with Intertoll in that respect. The Committee further highlighted the prevalence of illegal mining activities which had the potential to damage the road. We indeed share the concern of the Committee in this regard. It is up to us to educate people in our respective constituencies about the dangers of mining activities close to our road network.
The Committee noted that ZIMRA has been charging taxes on loan repayments being made through Infralink by ZINARA. The Infralink Tax exposure is an outstanding issue and engagements with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development are continuing with a view to resolving the matter.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I would also like to thank the Committee for the positive comments emanating from their tour of the Harare and Victoria Falls International Airports. As a Ministry, we remain conscious of the need for us to fulfil our role as a facilitator and enabler and pledge to execute that mandate to the best of our ability. Due to budgetary constraints, my Ministry is pursuing alternative and innovative funding modalities to ensure rehabilitation of infrastructure in the country. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
HON. NDUNA: Mr. Speaker Sir, thank you for affording me this opportunity. I want to thank the Minister for an expeditious, eloquent and very rounded response to the Committee’s report on the familiarisation tour on the Victoria Falls Airport and the Plumtree –
Mutare 800 km $206 million DBESA loan financed project.
If you heard from the Minister, he touched so much on what the Committee recommended and he has touched on a lot of issues that he has written the wrongs. To date Mr. Speaker Sir, because of an enhancement of computerisation both on the Mabvuku tollgate and the Traffic Safety Council, remittances on the 12,5% have spiked revenue generation by fourfold on the tollgate. He has also managed to do the road side fencing using the monies from Traffic Safety Council on the Plumtree Mutare highway, partially from Gweru up to Plumtree. This is applaudable Mr. Speaker Sir.
What you also want to note Mr. Speaker Sir, the Minister has been quite eloquent in terms of his partnership and his response to the Committee’s recommendation in particular because the Committee at the time has got about three engineers; Eng. Mudzuri, myself and Eng. Madanha who was his deputy minister. They observed aptly the carriageway markings that they were going the wrong direction and there was signage on the Plumtree Mutare Highway. He has since rectified that and to date you would want to know that we have gone down in terms of road carnage statistics because of that rectification.
Further to that Mr. Speaker Sir, he has not only put in two robots in Mutare town but he has also put in two robots in Chegutu town. That is applaudable. That is going outside the Committee’s recommendation and further upgrading the road that he speaks about. That is quite applaudable. As a Committee, we do not seek to govern but to interrogate the manner the Executive carries out its mandate. If all the Executive can come to Parliament and account to the people of Zimbabwe in the manner that he has accounted to this report, that would certainly be applaudable.
As I speak to you the issue of drainage in Chegutu in particular, where I come from and which is my constituency. It has cost the Ministry in particular ZINARA about US$150 000 because of what has happened at O.K and T.M. supermarkets. That road that leads to that drainage has unraveled and potholes have emanated because water has collected at those points. So if it can be expeditiously installed that 900 mm culvert on the Plumtree – Mutare Highway at Chicken Inn, it can certainly ameliorate the plight of ZINARA in terms of the monies that are being utilised in Chegutu town in particular.
Otherwise, this is a rounded response Mr. Speaker Sir, to a very good report that was produced by your Committee. I stand here Mr. Speaker Sir, not as the Committee Chair of the Transport and
Infrastructural Development Committee but I stand in the very big shoes of Hon. Christopher Chitindi who has rushed off to the bank to meet his bank manager. He has given me this opportunity to respond to the Minister. Mr. Speaker Sir, I want to thank the Minister and Committee for a wellrounded report.
I therefore move for the adoption of the First Report of the Portfolio Committee on Transport and Infrastructural Development on the Familiarisation Tour of Victoria Falls and Harare Airports and the
Plumtree – Mutare Road Project.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
FIRST REPORT OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON
TRANSPORT AND INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT ON
THE INQUIRY INTO THE TURNAROUND STRATEGY FOR THE
NATIONAL RAILWAYS OF ZIMBABWE
Fifth Order read: Adjourned debate on the First Report of the Portfolio Committee on Transport and Infrastructural Development on the Inquiry into the Turnaround Strategy for the National Railways of Zimbabwe.
Question again proposed.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Mr. Speaker Sir, I wish to respond to the Committee’s report on the turnaround of NRZ. I would like to thank you for affording me the opportunity to respond to the report of an inquiry into the turnaround strategy of NRZ, which was undertaken by the Portfolio Committee on
Transport and Infrastructural Development. I would like to thank the Committee for their report.
The Committee undertook this inquiry to get an appreciation of the operational challenges faced by the organisation. The Committee also sought to be appraised on the overall functions of NRZ and efforts being pursued to resuscitate the railway transport system. These are the Committee’s observations. The observations and recommendations made by the Committee and I hereby want to respond to the same as follows:
On resuscitation strategy premised on recapitalisation by Government – Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee observed that current efforts towards recapitalisation of NRZ appear to be premised on funding by Government. The NRZ’s recapitalisation strategy in fact aims to avoid dependence on Government. The funding structure currently being negotiated with the DIDG Transnet consortium does not call for Government sovereign guarantees and neither does it depend on the NRZ balance sheet to secure borrowings, but is predicated on the Transnet balance sheet and other financing instruments being structured by all parties concerned.
Service level agreements are also being negotiated with companies which depend on NRZ for their transportation requirements to ensure that the market is available to take up the service once the negotiations are completed and the rehabilitation programme commences. The legacy debts of the NRZ are being warehoused rather than being taken over by Government and the NRZ is working with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to develop credible and bankable debt retirement plans.
Mr. Speaker Sir, apart from the major initiative on the overall recapitalisation of the organisation, the NRZ has continued to pursue other short term initiatives to improve its performance. These include the release after overhaul of nearly 400 wagons and two mainline locomotives and the commissioning of the UHF radio network on the
Dabuka – Chikwalakwala line in 2017.
On the reduction of salary to revenue ratio: Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee observed that the reduction of the salary to revenue ratio is a long overdue initiative. The Committee further indicated that there does not appear to be any solution in sight in terms of raising the much needed financing of the workers who are already owed over $90 million.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the NRZ management has over the years taken concrete measures to reduce the salary to revenue ratio in very difficult operating environment. These measures include but are not limited to the following:
- Freeze on recruitment and natural wastage. NRZ has not been filling vacant posts that arise when employees exit the organisation unless it is a critical post.
- Retrenchment NRZ retrenched about 444 employees in 2015;
- Reduction in overtime and other related employment costs, and
- Automation of processes.
Mr. Speaker Sir, through these measures, the salaries to revenue ratios have progressively reduced in the last three years. In 2015, the salary to revenue ratio was 93%. In 2016, it came down to 92% and in
2017, it came down to 80%.
The NRZ managed to stabilise the disbursement of salaries in 2017 and reviewed the percentage of salaries being paid from 50 to 50% to 60 and 70%. Another review is planned for February 2018 to take this to 70 or 80%. Further reviews will be carried out in 2018 as performance continues to improve. The employees’ salary arrears are part of the NRZ debt to be warehoused by Government and the organisation is currently engaged with the Ministry of Finance over its plans to liquidate the warehoused debt.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the organisation continues to make payouts to retired and retrenched employees on a monthly basis and is targeting to complete liquidating salary arrears and retrenchment packages for the
440 employees retrenched in 2016 by the end of 2018.
Debt as an impediment to attract investors
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee expressed the view that the debt overhang of $176 million and the $90 million owed to employees were major impediments to attracting investors.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I am pleased to inform this august House that this challenge was addressed by the warehousing of the NRZ debt so that investors would come on a clean slate. In terms of the overall NRZ strategy, the warehoused debt will be liquidated over a period of time using funds that the NRZ will get after recapitalisation.
Bureaucratic red tape between the organisation and the parent
Ministry
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee pointed to red tape between NRZ and the Ministry as inhibiting expeditious decision making particularly with respect to price tariffs. The Committee noted that this has rendered NRZ uncompetitive especially against road transport as the latter is able to make price adjustments instantaneously in line with market forces. Mr. Speaker Sir, the NRZ determines its own tariffs and does not consult the Ministry on these. The tariffs are purely market driven.
NRZ not actively following up on the mineral claims held in
South Africa
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee made the point that mineral claims held in South Africa were not being followed up. It was argued that this could provide an alternative source of the much needed revenue for the entity.
Mr. Speaker, the NRZ’s interests in mining claims in South Africa are held under the auspices of the Pan African Minerals Development
Company (PAMDC), a company jointly owned by the governments of
Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa. Two representatives sit on the
PAMDC Board from Zimbabwe, one from the NRZ and the other from the Ministry of Mines. The company has been in the process of seeking for partners with financial capacity to undertake exploration activities on the claims. A tender was floated in December 2016 towards this end.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the company is currently involved in negotiations with a potential partner on a limestone project and with another on a manganese project. Mr. Speaker Sir, I wish to inform Members that work on processing other claims has been hampered by a dispute with another company over a double allocation of exploration rights on a significant portion of PAMDC’s claims by the South African
Department of Mineral Resources which is in the courts in South Africa. PAMDC won the case at the Supreme Court and the other company is now taking the matter to the Constitutional Court.
Lack of strategies to lure passengers to use rail transport
Mr. Speaker, the Committee noted that while Management at NRZ foresees an improvement in passenger movement in 2017, there appeared to be no initiatives taken to lure passengers. The Committee made the point that it could not ascertain the basis of this confident projection given the stiff competition from the road transport industry at the moment.
Mr. Speaker Sir, in the event that the NRZ did improve its passenger numbers from 210 000 moved in 2016 to 310 000 in 2017, the poor condition of the infrastructure, which leads to delays in the movement of trains and the poor condition of the coaches continue to be a challenge but these will be addressed under the recapitalisation programme and we have started doing that.
The need to replace the Centralised Train Control System
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee highlighted the need to urgently replace the collapsed Centralised Train Control System. It was argued that if this was not done, it could have devastating effects on both cargo and passengers.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the restoration of a Centralised Trains Control
System is one of the projects to be covered by the US$400 million recapitalisation programme. The NRZ in the meantime developed a UHF/VHF voice communication system over most of its mainline corridors to enable trains to communicate with control centres. The corridors so far covered are Victoria Falls – Bulawayo, Bulawayo Harare and DabukaChikwalakwala, and the organisation is currently working on the Harare – Mutare corridor. In addition, a GPS satellite tracking system has been installed on mainline locomotives to monitor the movements of trains.
Government to guarantee the debt owed to employees
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee recommended that Government should guarantee the debts owed to employees by the NRZ if it is to attract a serious private investor. Mr. Speaker Sir, as part of the NRZ recapitalisation programme, the Government has agreed to warehouse about $323.5 million as at 31 December, 2016 and is in the process of crafting the enabling legislation to effect such an arrangement. This was done to ensure that the legacy debts of NRZ do not encumber the potential investors being engaged on the recapitalisation programme. Of this figure, $98 million comprised salary arrears. The proposal will be for NRZ to liquidate the warehouse debt over a period of time with funds generated from the recapitalisation process.
Ringfencing bulk cargo
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee further recommended that the Ministry should expedite the enactment of legislation banning the transportation of bulk goods using road transport and ringfence traffic to rail. Mr. Speaker Sir, the recommendation brought forward by the
Committee was approved by Cabinet at its thirtythird meeting held on
16th October, 2017.
My Ministry has started the consultative process with other stakeholders who will be affected by this decision. Once consultations are completed and financial closure is reached on the recapitalisation programme which will indicate to the Ministry the capacity of NRZ, relevant legislation will be enacted. Currently, the organisation has no capacity to move all bulk traffic on offer owing to the capacity challenges. Recapitalisation thus will address the capacity constraints, among them track cautions (speed restrictions) highlighted in the report.
Inventory of all NRZ properties
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee further recommended that the NRZ should come up with an inventory of all its properties within and outside the country and use some of the properties to liquidate their debts. Mr. Speaker Sir, the NRZ does not own assets outside Zimbabwe though the NRZ Pension Fund and Emerged Railway Property (ERP) do. An inventory has been done for all locally held properties. NRZ will seek to operate joint venture partnerships with suitable partners to unlock the value of some of the assets as opposed to disposing of the same. The organisation recently acquired a Real Estate Management software and is transferring the data base of all its properties into the new system.
General Manager of NRZ not to sit on the BBR Board
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee pointed out that allowing the General Manager of the NRZ Board to sit on the BBR Board, a competitor in the rail industry is against sound corporate practice. Mr. Speaker Sir, from the time that BBR was incorporated in 1997, the Ministry has appointed the office of the NRZ General Manager, one other member from NRZ senior management and an official from the
Ministry to represent NRZ and Government interests on the BBR Board. The objective is to have representatives who are able to engage representatives from the other shareholders in the discussions and debate in the board. Mr. Speaker Sir, we have noted concerns of the Committee regarding this issue and have directed the board to find an alternative to protect the interests of the NRZ on the board.
NRZ to develop an industrial relations policy
Mr. Speaker, the Committee further urged the NRZ to develop an industrial relations policy. I am pleased to report, Mr. Speaker Sir, that the NRZ Board has requested management to come up with an HR Strategy and Policy, which will incorporate an Industrial Relations Policy. The major issue that was straining the industrial relations environment was the irregular payment of salaries. Management has from 2017, managed to stabilise the payment of salaries as I have alluded to earlier on in my presentation.
Engagement of a technical partner on a PPP basis
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee noted that Government has granted the NRZ authority to engage in negotiations with a view to finding a technical partner. The Committee urged the NRZ to proceed with speed in this regard. Mr. Speaker Sir, the NRZ floated a request for proposals in April, 2017 for the recapitalisation of the organisation which culminated in the selection of the Diaspora Infrastructure Development Group (DIDG)/Transnet Consortium as the winning bidder. As is now common knowledge, negotiations with the consortium are in progress.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I am pleased to report that the NRZ has received the first batch of seven locomotives, 157 wagons and seven passenger coaches as part of an interim arrangement with the DIDG/Transnet Consortium to bridge the gap in rolling stock. The equipment was officially received by His Excellency, the President on the 21st of
February, 2018 in Bulawayo. May I take this opportunity to thank the Portfolio Committee for their overwhelming support during the commissioning of the wagons and locomotives.
Mr. Speaker Sir, when all the interim equipment is delivered, the NRZ would have received 13 locomotives, 200 wagons and 34 passenger coaches. This equipment will enable the NRZ to uplift an additional 100 000 tonnes of cargo per month and boost monthly revenues to $1.1 million.
I can point out Mr. Speaker Sir to the august House that these wagons, coaches and locomotives that I am referring to are not new wagons and they are not part of the deal of the $400 million. They are a stopgap measure, an interim relief to the NRZ which we have leased by agreement with the Transnet and DIDG because it will take about 18 months for them to deliver new wagons, coaches and locomotives which they are already working on in order to deliver them to the NRZ. That may be has to be made very clear for our colleagues or Members of
Parliament.
Government to immediately remove duty on fuel meant for
NRZ Locomotives
The Committee also recommended that Government should consider removing duty on fuel meant for NRZ wagons. Mr. Speaker
Sir, the Committee submitted a proposal for the removal of duty on fuel.
However, after consultations with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development, the complete waiver of all duties was considered to be impractical, and the focus is now limited to the road levy portion of the duty.
Conclusion
In conclusion Mr. Speaker Sir, I would like to assure the House that my Ministry is currently seized with the matter of the recapitalisation of the NRZ and results of these efforts should begin to show soon. I thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
HON. NDUNA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I want to applaud and thank the Minister for a well rounded response. There are two issues that come to the fore. The issue of the mineral rights in South
Africa, which reside in the same pool of property like the Victoria Falls Hotel and the Victoria Falls Bridge. I am quite elated that he has taken that under his stewardship and is going to make sure that there is expeditious usage of those mineral rights.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I want to thank the Minister that now NRZ is going to be an awakened giant, aware that they are now embedded with DIDG/Transnet. Transnet is the owner of Africa’s 80% of all rail systems Mr. Speaker and they reside in South Africa. For you to see far, you need to stand on the shoulders of giants and this is what the Minister has done as he has responded to, in particular, the Members of Parliament from Bulawayo’s plight in order to resuscitate NRZ. I therefore move that the First Report of Portfolio Committee on
Transport and Infrastructural Development on the Inquiry into the Turnaround Strategy for the National Railways of Zimbabwe be adopted.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
SECOND REPORT OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE
ON TRANSPORT AND INFRASTRUCTURAL
DEVELOPMENT ON THE INQUIRY INTO THE
TURNAROUND STRATEGY FOR THE CENTRAL
MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT DEPARTMENT
Sixth Order read: Adjourned debate on the Second Report of the
Portfolio Committee on Transport and Infrastructural Development on the Inquiry into the Turnaround Strategy for the Central Mechanical Equipment Department.
Question again proposed.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR.
GUMBO):Mr. Speaker Sir, I would want to respond to this report by the Portfolio Committee but from the grumblings and having also been in the House for a long time, it would appear like Members seem to be saying enough becomes enough. I have been having these responses for quite a long time and I was feeling it was very unfair for the Committee. I am now alone in the Ministry, before I used to send my deputy and the work that I do is calling for me to travel across the country and at times I am then accused of not coming to make responses. I wanted to do my duty but if I am allowed, I can hand over the reports, I have got all the reports with me, if that pleases the Chairperson.
HON. NDUNA: You can carry on. Thank you.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Maybe Hon. Minister, you can
carry on with this report.
HON. DR. GUMBO: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I would like to thank you for affording me the opportunity to respond to a report on an inquiry into the turnaround strategy of the Central Mechanical Equipment Department which was undertaken by the Portfolio
Committee on Transport and Infrastructure Development.
The observations of the Committee are as follows; the Ministry notes the observations and recommendations made by the Committee and hereby respond as follows:
Mr. Speaker, the Committee recommended that the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe and the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development must be urgently engaged to guarantee protection of investors willing to partner CMED in fuel importation. The adopted strategy on the revival of the organization’s fuel business is to get a strategic partner who will inject the required working capital. To that end, the CMED and management have engaged the APEX Bank to guarantee the protection of investors willing to partner the organisation in the fuel importation business. Given the foreign currency shortages prevailing in the country, one of the key issues CMED has raised with the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, is the need for a consistent allocation of foreign currency to enable CMED and strategic partner to meet the fuel import bills.
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe could not commit itself to giving CMED preferential treatment as it has a standing import priority list. In other words, the needs of CMED will be met within the confines of the import priority list.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee pointed out the need for Government within the limits of the resources available to it, to stager payment of the debt to CMED to ensure that the organisation has adequate resources to fund critical operations. The burden to address this issue lies with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development. On its part, the CMED has employed a number of strategies to recover the debt and these include debt settlement through setoffs, taking legal action against debtor Ministries and departments. These strategies have to a limited extent assisted but a huge amount of $24, 7 million still remains outstanding of which $22 million is owed by Government.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee made the point that my Ministry should consider granting CMED a stake like other indigenous companies in major infrastructural development projects such as the dualisation of the BeitbridgeChirundu highway.
Contracts signed with the main contractor Geiger International provide that 40% of the project value which will be subcontracted to local companies. CMED is not only a local company but a state owned enterprise and therefore qualifies to make that application.
Mr. Speaker Sir, CMED is currently busy preparing itself for this and other projects. The following measures are being instituted:
- The company is setting up a construction unit, thereby placing itself in a position to execute construction works. The
construction unit will have a full array of equipment namely a Road Reclaimer, Tippers, a Water Bowser, pneumatic roller, a Vibrant Roller and a grader.
- CMED recently procured a road reclaimer, high tech machinery that rehabilitates a road in a short space of time performing multitasks. It executes four processes that would ordinarily have required four different pieces of equipment.
- The company has embarked on a rehabilitation exercise of its current fleet to improve on reliability and performance once the project kicks off.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee retired that the need for fuel scandal be urgently concluded and for the culprits to be brought to book. The case referred to is before the courts and therefore as such subjudice
Mr. Speaker Sir, in view of the competitive nature of the fuel industry, the Committee urged CMED to benchmark itself against private suppliers such as Puma and Total and adopt best practices to ensure that their operations are sustainable. It is indeed acknowledged that the image of CMED service stations leaves a lot to be desired. This stems from the fact that the institution used to operate as a Government department with the service stations designed to service the internal fleet in which case competitiveness was not an issue.
I am happy to report that CMED has initiated the process of upgrading its fuel infrastructure not only to improve its outlook but to meet the regulatory requirements imposed by the institutions such as the Zimbabwe Regulatory Authority (ZERA). Local authorities and Environmental Management Authority under its capital budget for
2018, CMED intends to spend $2, 7 million on the upgrading of the
Workington or Coventry Road Service Station and the Victoria Falls
Service Station through Public Private Partnerships. The Workington Service Station is estimated to cost $2 million while the Victoria Falls
Service Station will be upgraded to a cost of $700 000.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee implored the CMED to consider actively pursuing strategic alliance with successful players in the industry in order to remain viable. Mr. Speaker Sir, CMED has the potential to perform well. Its major challenge is nonpayment of services by Government Ministries and Departments. As indicated above, CMED is owed $22 million by debtor Ministries. The debt has a negative impact on the provision of services by the organisation. The company finds itself unable to recapitalise and procure consumables for its vehicle fleet as the money is tied up in debt. As a Ministry, we will continue engaging Treasury so that it liquidates the debt.
In contrast, EasyGo Car Hire and Travel which is a cash business, is doing well because it does not face any cash flow challenges. Its vehicle fleet is relatively new and is within its economic life. Consequently, it has established itself as a reputable and dominant driving school in the country.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee further recommended that the employment contracts of CMED’s top officials must not be open ended. The Public Utilities and Corporate Governance Bill intends to address the issue of performance contracts for Executives in State owned Enterprises. The CMED, along with other State owned enterprises will be guided by this Bill in that respect, once it becomes law.
The Committee encouraged the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) to liquidate their US$768 000 debt with CMED in order to open further lines of assistance for the 2018 elections. I wish to inform Hon. Members that ZEC settled its debt emanating from vehicles hired for the 2013 Harmonised Elections, in 2017.
The Committee expressed the view that forensic audit should be instituted on the fuel business unit before any funds amounting to US$24 million can be injected. It is my humble submission that circumstances surrounding the prejudice of US$2.7 million to the company through the
First Oil deal were thoroughly investigated; hence a forensic audit would be a waste of resources. Officials implicated were subjected to disciplinary hearings and court processes and they were exonerated.
The Committee also emphasised the need to modernise and computerise the equipment of the organisation. In 2017, CMED embarked on some serious strides to recapitalise the equipment business. The company secured a bank loan of US$1.9 million with which it intends to utilise for this purpose. The exercise of modernising the equipment is underway. What is critical is to maintain or sustain the momentum going forward. We hope Government will give support in that respect through the debt liquidation process. I thank you.
HON. NDUNA: Mr. Speaker Sir, I want to thank the Minister for a well rounded report again and also thank him for his resilience and endurance, having gone through a plethora of reports from the
Committee.
I want to just touch on one issue, the $768 000 that has been settled by ZEC to CMED. This is applaudable, yours truly stood before Hon. Justice Chigumba once and she asked yours truly to settle his debts if it comes to debts and she was not going to rule in any other way. Now that she is the head of ZEC and she had settled her debts, I am quite enlightened that she is leading by example. Mr. Speaker Sir, I want to thank you. I therefore move that the motion that the Second Report of the Portfolio Committee on Transport and Infrastructural Development on the Inquiry into the Turnaround Strategy of the Central Mechanical
Equipment Department (CMED) be adopted.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
SECOND REPORT OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON
TRANSPORT AND INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT ON
THE ENQUIRY IN THE AVIATION INDUSTRY
Seventh Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Second
Report of the Portfolio Committee on Transport and Infrastructural
Development on the Inquiry into the Aviation Industry in Zimbabwe.
Question again proposed.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRSTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO): Mr.
Speaker Sir, in their submission to the Committee, Traffic Controllers and Pilots raised a number of issues. The Ministry also notes the observations and recommendations made by the Committee and hereby responds as follows:
Since 2014, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAAZ) embarked on a fundraising initiative to procure identified systems for airspace management and airport infrastructure such as;
- Air Traffic Control Training Simulator;
- Air Traffic Control Communications System for seven airports;
- Navigational Aids System, Very High Frequency Omnidirectional
Range (VOR) and Distance Measuring Equipment (DME) for three airports;
- Primary and Secondary Radar Surveillance Systems to cover the whole airspace;
- Baggage handling systems and
- Completion of terminal buildings, runways and taxiways rehabilitation.
Mr. Speaker Sir, these efforts were meant to address nationwide modernisation of systems for the Communication, Navigation, Surveillance and Air Traffic Management (CNS/ATM) systems and rehabilitation of airport infrastructure. However, fund raising in a depressed macroeconomic environment posed serious challenges to the
Authority, which could only implement the Air Traffic Control Training Simulator using own resources at a cost of US$565 000. The simulator was commissioned in August, 2016.
I am pleased to inform the august House that CAAZ entered into a
US$33.7 million agreement on 20th December, 2017 for the financing, supply and installation of all the above systems including automatic Dependant Surveillance –Broadcast (ADSB) following an award of tender to Indra Sistemas of Spain through State Procurement Board resolution PBR No. 1109. The agreement includes the Tower Cab for J.
- Nkomo International Airport Air Traffic Control Tower.
The funding modalities for this project are being finalised and the project will take 18 months to complete with the majority of the systems being installed and commissioned within twelve months from June 2018. In the meantime, CAAZ is continuing to provide the necessary preventive and corrective maintenance on the available systems in order to provide services that meet minimum standards until the replacement of systems is implemented.
CAAZ continues to audit its processes and is committed to address all shortcomings through training of all its personnel including Air
Traffic Controllers and Technical Staff. In this regard, all Air Traffic
Controllers have since gone for mandatory refresher training following the procurement of the Air Traffic Controller Training Simulator in
2016.
Mr. Speaker, with regards to the airport modernisation programme, Robert Gabriel Mugabe International Airport terminal buildings are set to be expanded through a loan financing to the tune of US$153 million from the Government of the People’s Republic of China through the Export Import Bank of China. The Government to Government Memorandum of Agreement was signed on 6th December, 2017. The project will include the completion of the runway rehabilitation which has been outstanding for a couple of years due to financial challenges.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Air Traffic Control Tower at J. M Nkomo International Airport will be constructed once the US$7 million allocated by Treasury in the 2018 National Budget has been disbursed. Meanwhile, CAAZ continues to upgrade the airport infrastructure to meet the expected international service standards as stipulated by ICAO.
Mr. Speaker Sir, CAAZ is also in the process of tendering for the installation of perimeter fences at Charles Prince and Buffalo Range Airports and the electrification of the fence at Victoria Falls International Airport. The provision of airport ancillary systems like wind socks is part of the routine maintenance of airports, which are ongoing works.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee called upon CAAZ to implement the Safety Management Policy in full. I am pleased to report that a requirement for Safety Management Policy has been incorporated in the current Civil Aviation Bill and the Bill has now gone through the public hearings on 12th and 13th February, 2018. The Ministry is looking forward to the expeditious promulgation of the new Act.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee also made several observations regarding Air Zimbabwe. The Committee recommended that representatives of Pilots and Engineers be drafted as permanent members of the Board of Directors of the national airline. The Board of the national airline is appointed in terms of Clause 69 of the Articles of Association which requires that people be selected on the basis of their experience and qualifications in the various professional disciplines for the benefit of the organisation.
Mr. Speaker Sir, with regard to fleet modernization, I wish to inform the House that in Zimbabwe, air operators are no longer allowed to import Chapter 2 aircraft such as the Boeing 737200. Those who already have them may continue operating them under special maintenance conditions. This is in line with the prevailing environment management standards, reducing operational costs and reduction of foreign currency outflow. Mr. Speaker Sir, whilst the economic design service objective for most aircraft is 20 years, there is an escalation of costs soon after that. This is occasioned by enhanced maintenance programmes and structural checks to maintain airworthiness and operational efficiencies.
Mr. Speaker Sir, it is indisputable that the Harare / London is very lucrative and efforts are underway to resuscitate its operations. The airline will currently have to partner with a regional airline until Third Country recertification is attained from the European Union. Mr. Speaker Sir, the Government has continued to support the national airline in its operations over the years. This has included ring fencing of almost all domestic routes for the national airline. However, other continental initiatives like the Yamoussoukro Declaration militate against continued protection.
Mr. Speaker Sir, Hon. Members will be aware that the national airline does not have adequate and appropriate equipment to ensure a semblance of schedule integrity. There has also been increased pressure from the tourism sector players that the sporadic nature of the operations of the national airline are militating against the growth of the tourism industry. I wish therefore to announce that with immediate effect, we have made the decision to allow other players to ply the domestic routes on frequencies not allocated to the national airline for the convenience of the travelling public and tourists.
Mr. Speaker sir, I would like to assure this august House that Government is seized with the issue of the revival of our national airline and is working on a holistic package that will include the clearance of the IATA debt which has crippled its operations. Mr. Speaker Sir, in the coming few weeks, the national airline will take delivery of new equipment which will greatly improve its operations. I thank you.
HON. NDUNA: MR. Speaker Sir, once again I want to thank the Minister for a well rounded response, in particular the tail end of that report that speaks to the rehabilitation and complementation of the equipment at Air Zimbabwe. I speak as an aviator of ten years, an air traffic controller and a combat controller. The issue of a surveillance is very key Mr. Speaker and the Minister has eloquently addressed that one to the effect that he says in 18 months Zimbabwe will not be a black whole which it currently is. This is because if an aircraft goes down with 300 people, it will never go up again. As we fly without radars, it is akin to driving blindfolded Mr. Speaker Sir. I want to thank the Minister for a wellrounded response and I want to say to him I wish I was again the Chairperson of that Committee.
Mr. Speaker, I therefore move that the Second Report of Portfolio Committee on Transport and Infrastructural Development on the Inquiry into the Aviation Industry in Zimbabwe be adopted.
Motion put and agreed to.
On the motion of THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO),
the House is adjourned at Twenty Two Minutes past Five o’clock p.m.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Wednesday, 14th February, 2018
The Senate met at Half-past Two o’clock p. m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENTS BY THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
ADVERSE REPORT RECEIVED FROM THE PARLIAMENTARY
LEGAL COMMITTEE
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I have to inform
the Senate that I have received an Adverse Report from the
Parliamentary Legal Committee on Statutory Instrument No. 79 of 2017 gazetted during the month of August.
REAPPOINTMENT AS CHAIRPERSON OF THEMATIC
COMMITTEE
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I also have to inform the Senate that Hon. Sen. Makore has been reappointed as the Chairperson of the Thematic Committee on Gender and Development –
[HON. SENATORS: Hear, hear.] –
MOTION
LEAVE TO MOVE SUSPENSION OF PROVISIONS OF STANDING ORDERS NUMBER 50, 61 AND 128
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Madam President, I seek
leave of the House to move that the provisions of Standing Orders
Numbers 50, 61 and 128 regarding the automatic adjournment of the
Senate at Five Minutes to Seven o’clock p.m. on sitting days other than a Friday and at Twenty Five Minutes past One o’clock p.m. on a Friday; private Members’ motions taking precedence on Thursdays after Question Time and that Question Time shall be on Thursdays and stages of Bills respectively, be suspended in respect of the Appropriation
(2018) Bill [H. B. 8, 2017.] and the Finance Bill [H. B. 1B, 2018.] Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
SUSPENSION OF PROVISIONS OF STANDING ORDERS
NUMBER 50, 61AND 128
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Madam President, I now
move that the provisions of Standing Orders Numbers 51, 61 and 128 regarding the automatic adjournment of the Senate at Five Minutes to Seven o’clock p.m. on sitting days other than a Friday and at Twenty Five Minutes past One o’clock p.m. on a Friday; private Members’ motions taking precedence on Thursdays after Question Time and that Question Time shall be on Thursdays and stages of Bills respectively, be suspended in respect of the Appropriation (2018) Bill [H. B. 8, 2017] and the Finance Bill [H. B. 1B, 2018].
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): I again rise to move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 1 to 3 be stood over until Orders of the Day, Numbers 4 and 5 on today’s Order Paper have been disposed of.
Motion put and agreed to.
SECOND READING
FINANCE BILL [H. B. 1, 2018]
Fourth Order read: Second Reading: Finance Bill [H. B. 1, 2018.].
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Madam President, the
purpose of this Bill is to give effect to the revenue measures which I announced in the 2018 National Budget Statement presented to the Parliament of Zimbabwe on 7 December, 2017. The measures seek to achieve the following, that is just in summary:
- Consolidate the gains realised by local industry through enactment of appropriate support measures;
- We seek to promote power generation;
- The measures seek to promote mineral beneficiation;
- They also seek to enhance revenue collections and improving efficiency in tax administration;
- We also seek through these measures to provide relief to taxpayers, mainly through a moratorium on the collection of interest and penalties on outstanding taxes; and
- We are also, through this Finance Bill, seeking to amend other statutes such as the Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act [Chapter 14:13], the Exchange Control Act [Chapter 22:05], and the Bank Use Promotion Act [Chapter 24:24]. Support to Industry
- Madam President, the ‘New Economic Order’, prioritises high productivity in agriculture with a view to support and sustain other sectors of the economy, particularly manufacturing.
- This is to be built through linkages between anchor companies and out-grower farmers or small to medium enterprises in the provision of technical and support services that include agronomic advice and marketing opportunities.
- Madam President, the Bill therefore seeks to support the concept of anchor companies by granting a 150% deduction on any expenditure related to technical and support services incurred by a taxpayer who is an anchor company providing inputs, agronomic advice and marketing opportunities to a group of outgrower farmers and small or medium enterprises.
Power Generation
- Madam President, in recognition of the energy deficiency within the country, Government extended a number of fiscal concessions towards power generating projects. Recognising the growth trajectory expected under the new economic dispensation, this Bill seeks to promote investment in additional power generation projects by exempting such projects from corporate income tax for the first five years with effect from 1st January, 2018. Thereafter, a corporate tax rate of 15% will apply.
Mineral Beneficiation
- Madam President, in order to promote mineral beneficiation within the country, and mindful of the investment that has already been made by some mining houses towards attaining milestones in the agreed road map, the Bill proposes to further defer implementation of the export tax on unbeneficiated and semi-beneficiated platinum to 1st January, 2019.
- The Bill also proposes to reduce the export tax from 15% to staggered rates ranging from 0% for refined precious metals to 5% for PGM concentrates.
- This measure Madam President, will however, not apply during the first five years of projects that commence operations on or after 1st of January, 2018.
- The Bill thus seeks to extend the same concept of an export tax for lithium concentrate at a rate of 5% of the gross value and unbeneficiated dimensional stones such as black granite at staggered rates ranging from 0% to 5% depending on the level of beneficiation.
Revenue Enhancing Measures
- Madam President, in order to raise additional revenues, to fund critical Government programmes, the Bill proposes the following measures:-
- We are seeking to implement a virtual software based Tax Management System for some classes of taxpayers to facilitate the electronic recording and transmission of business transactions to
ZIMRA;
- Devolve the responsibility for collecting development levies, which had been taken over by the Ministry responsible for lands, to the appropriate Rural District Council.
- Apportion prepaid expenses in the period in which they are incurred for purposes of determining taxable income. This measure has the effect of denying taxpayers the opportunity to claim deductions on the prepaid expenses, which was of course prejudicing the fiscus;
- Levy 3% on gross takings by bookmakers in order to mobilise resources to upgrade community recreational centres; and also
- Define ‘equity’ so that includes issues and paid up share capital, unappropriated profits, reserves, realised reserves and interest free loans from shareholders with a view to minimise tax liability through manipulation of financial statements.
Tax Relief Measures
- Madam President, in order to provide relief to taxpayers of various classes, the Bill is proposing the following measures:-
- We are proposing an amnesty on interest and penalties for outstanding taxes that have accrued prior to 1st December, 2017. This is for taxpayers who come forward and settle their obligations within the period ending 30th June, 2018. This proposal recognises the economic challenges experienced over the past decade which have resulted in a number of companies failing to meet their tax obligation.
- Secondly, we are seeking to grant exemption of registered buyers of tobacco from the requirement to withhold 10% tax in order to ease the tax burden on tobacco farmers that are experiencing viability challenges. - Removal of the 5 cents tax on intermediated money transfers and automated financial transactions with a monetary value of US$10 and below, in order to reduce the cost of transacting using such alternative payment forms. We are seeking to encourage Madam President the use of electronic transfers away from cash based transactions.
- Review the VAT withholding rate from 10% to 5% of the value of taxable supplies, in order to minimise cash flow challenges on VAT registered operators.
- Grant relief to VAT registered taxpayers who were required to pay VAT on capital equipment that would be deemed to have been disposed in cases where, through a change of the law, previously taxable supplies become exempt from VAT.
- Exclude locally contracted debt from the prescribed debt to equity ratio of three to one, on condition that the Parties involved are unrelated in order to support capitalisation on struggling companies.
- Review the capital allowances for staff housing and schools, hospitals, clinics and nursing homes constructed by holders of Special Mining Leases from US$10 000 to US$25 000; and US$150 000 respectively. This measure will assist to uplift the living standards of mining communities and also retain skilled labour force.
- Compel local diamond producers to grant a price discount to domestic beneficiation firms, which is equivalent to the value of the royalty forgone by Government.
- Align the income tax relief on Export and Foreign Remittance Incentives to the date of introduction of the scheme, that is, June 2016.
- Repeal interest on penalties in order to give relief to taxpayers.
- Align the effective date of the Health Levy to the date of promulgation of the Finance Act, in order to avoid retrospective collection of the levy.
Efficiency in Revenue Administration
- Madam President, importers have taken advantage of limited
ZIMRA administration capacity to monitor Bonded Warehouses, hence generate fraudulent documentation which purportedly shows that proprietors would have been provided space and bond surety for imported goods, thereby prejudicing the fiscus of revenue.
- In order to countervail this malpractice, the Bill proposes to provide for Private and Public Bonded Warehouses whose proprietors will be allocated Business Partner Numbers to facilitate monitoring of importations into such warehouses.
Legislative Amendments
Other legislative changes proposed in the Bill seek to: -
- Amend the definition of financial services to include banking institutions which had erroneously been removed from definition of financial institutions for purposes of exemption from VAT.
- Regularise the exemption of diesel imported for use in approved power generation projects from carbon tax, NOCZIM Debt Redemption and Strategic Fuel Reserve levies, with effect from 1 January, 2017.
- Remove the requirement for a contract to be concluded between ZIMRA and agencies appointed to collect presumptive taxes.
- Regularise the reduction of platinum royalty rates to 2.5% for all platinum mining companies in line with the Government commitments in some of the Special Mining Lease Agreements.
- Make minor amendments and corrections to the expedited procedure for the recovery of tax debts, including the securing in advance through a “provisional attachment order”
of any moveable property that may be sold in satisfaction of taxes due.
Amendment of Other Statutes
The Bill also seeks to amend the following Statutes: -
- Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act [Chapter 14:13] to among other issues, restrict compulsory indigenisation threshold of 51/49% only to those enterprises engaged in the mining of diamonds and platinum (and this is pending the formulation of a Diamond Mining Policy and
Platinum Mining Policy) and also replace the autonomous National Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Board with the National Indigenisation and Economic
Empowerment Unit within the Ministry responsible for the Act;
- Amend the Exchange Control Act by embodying the “Amnesty in Respect of Illegally Expatriated Property” which was earlier published on 4 December, 2017 by the Presidential Powers (Temporary Measures) (Amendment of Exchange Control Act) Regulations, 2017;
- Amend the Public Finance Management Act [Chapter 22:19] by giving statutory recognition to the position and functions of the Office of the President and Cabinet;
- Amend the Banking Act [Chapter 24:20] by, among other things, permitting a bank to purchase its own shares or the shares of any associate, or to make any loan or advance on the security of its own shares or the shares of any associate, provided the prior written approval of the Registrar of
Banking Institutions is obtained;
- Amend the Bank Use Promotion Act [Chapter 24:24] to among other things facilitate and widen the acceptance of payment for everyday transactions otherwise than by cash, for example, by RTGs and other electronic means.
The amendment also prohibits differential pricing based solely on the mode of payment, increases the amount of cash that may be held by individuals outside the banking system, and provides a mechanism for the freezing of bank accounts, subject to judicial oversight.
Finally, an amnesty for the banking of hoarded cash is enacted for the period 1st January, 2018 to the 31st March, 2018.
- Parliamentary Pensions Act [Chapter 2:02] to provide, among other issues, the annual pension of a former Speaker, Deputy Speaker, President of the Senate or Deputy President of the Senate who served at least one full term in that Officer; and
- Parliamentary Salaries, Allowances and Benefits Act [Chapter 2:03] to provide, among other issues, for the prescription of specific allowances and services and facilities for a former Speaker of the House or President of the Senate who has served at least one full term in that Office.
Madam President, with these remarks, I now move that the Bill be now read a second time.
HON. SEN. B. SIBANDA: Thank you Madam President, first of
all, I thank the Minister for his presentation. I have got a few remarks or questions. I applaud the decision to endeavour to increase industrial productivity. However, I also notice that we have a productivity centre in this land which has been lying semi-idle. I believe that the activation of the productivity centre would contribute positively to the overall growth of productivity in industry. The spill off from productivity, I am sure everybody appreciates from industrial productivity, every one of us appreciates that it would be significant and it would inject impetus to this economy.
That is my first contribution; my second contribution would be in the form of a comment and a question. Maybe I did not understand the Minister. The Minister talked about an eventually 15% corporate tax on those who invest in energy, maybe I did not fully understand him, but if that is the case, please clarify. My question is, if those who invested in energy generation eventually pay a 15% corporate tax, what happens to those who were already in the business by the time this Act comes into play; correct me if I am wrong Minister.
My third comment is on amnesty on interest for those who have not paid their VAT or corporate tax up to date. I applaud the Minister for that, I know a number of businesses have gone under not because they were totally unable to pay the corporate tax, but because they have had extra charges that include interest and penalties placed on their initial account which had not been up to date.
My fourth comment is on the Indigenisation Act where diamonds and platinum have been reserved for the 51%:49%. I agree with that minerals resources once depleted are not recoverable and sure, we all agree that mineral resources fall into various categories which are different. However, I am saying maybe the lesson that we learnt as Zimbabweans is to be slightly pro-active, if we had done this a few years ago, we would not be where we are economically. We would have raised more investment and that comment applies generally to our reaction time to suggestions.
Minister, I want to talk a bit about price differentiation. We all meet this in our daily lives, yesterday we spent a lot of time talking about this but the bottom line is, it is a manifestation of the state of the economy. I for one used to be a significant business person in Harare. I am aware that the businessman is in a very invidious position because of the state of the economy; you are thinking about your business tomorrow, you are trying to service your accounts today and you really do not know what will happen to you the next day. That is precisely why people have a regime of charges.
I think as a nation we must agree that the faster we address our economic situation, the better for this challenge. It will not go away, we cannot wish it away. Minister, I remember last year I was asking you if we can safely say we can denominate the bond against the US$ and say we give it a value that we determine. You assured me that the bond would remain at par, but the practice is the bond is not trading at that level, the bond is unavailable – [HON. SENATORS: Hear, hear.] – The bond will not trade at that level in this global village. We have experienced this and I think we forget too easily. That is what happened to the Zimbabwean dollar, we tried to peg it at $3 to the US$ and it moved to 6, 10 - because we attempted to do the uneconomically viable act.
My last comment is on hoarding of cash, Minister, I know all of us particularly our age, when we grew up, we knew that money is found at the bank. It is a regrettable symptom that money is now found under mattresses. We knew a few groups of traders in this land that used to keep money under mattresses. That did not include the Blackman; he would rather hold it in cash in the bank or in the form of cattle. Today, people are keeping money, particularly foreign currency because it is a survival skill. I am not in any way condoning it but I think the earlier we accept and the earlier we accelerate our economic recovery, these things disappear naturally. You will remember Minister what happened soon after we formed the GNU, price stabilised, the informal money market disappeared, the banks became liquid - you could go to the bank and get your forex but it was because of a confidence factor that had filtered into our economic system. Minister, I know and I sympathise with you and may be for a long time, that it is critical, very critical, imperative that we get this economy right. I am sure that a lot of your proposals are attempting at that. However, it is very important that the proposal is followed by act, so that the desired results are achieved.
Madam President, I thank you for the opportunity – [HON. SENATORS: Hear, hear.] –
*HON. SEN. MUMVURI: Thank you Madam President, I stand
up to add my voice on the Finance Bill that was brought by the Minister.
The previous speaker has highlighted a lot of the things I wanted to say. He used quite a lot of jargon and I am going to say a few things to ensure that the electorate we represent understands it. Firstly, he mentioned measures that need to be taken to enhance revenue collection. In my opinion, agriculture as mentioned by the Minister is the backbone of our economy. As we can see, there has been no enough rainfall this season. If the Government has realised that agriculture is the backbone of this economy, then we should be more serious about irrigation. If you go to Rushinga and Mt Darwin, there is no agriculture that is taking place and currently there is no grain that can be salvaged for people to get food. I think we should have put water bodies that should be in existence for people to be able to engage in irrigation. I think that would go a long way. The only solace we have is that last year we were able to harvest quite a lot, but what I think is that irrigation should be done in all areas. In Rushinga and Mt Darwin there are no existing water bodies, but there are dams like Sengwa Dam that were pegged a long time ago as was done at Tokwe-Mukorsi but nothing is happening. A case in point is the Semwa Dam to serve Rushing and Mount Darwin.
On the issue of power generation of electricity, we want to thank the Government for its initiative. Part of Kariba South has come on board, but what we wanted was to proceed with what is taking place on this initiative so that we do not engage in load shedding as power generation leads to the development of the nation.
I heard that ZESA employees are requesting for salary hikes and that this is based on collective bargaining that was done in 2012. ZESA is not against this but what we need to realise is that if they increase tarrifs, it will raise the cost of electricity. Some of the arguments that they are giving will cost us and I do not think it is possible.
Hon. Sen. Sibanda spoke at length on the issue of revenue enhancing measures. The issues of ZINWA electronic transfers that you are mentioning should be practical and not a talk show. Deputy Minister Mukupe once went to the border areas and he came across quite a number of issues that are happening. Most machinesare not working, they are using the manual system. It is the manual system that causes corruption because people bring in goods that are not accounted for. I think this should be taken seriously to ensure that the electronic system functions. This will reduce corruption.
We once went with our Committee to the borders and we witnessed the same thing. We were assured that if electricity is available, they can scan a vehicle from far, but what we realised is that nothing was happening at those scan machines. This issue is continuously talked about, but we are made to understand that if this happens, a lot of revenue will be realised.
There was also the issue of the three tier pricing system that is a challenge currently. We talked about it Minister, in your absence.
There is a motion that was moved by Hon. Mawire. We debated it a lot. We need your assistance because what is taking place is the issue of the black market and it is taking place right under our noses. It is happening at Eastgate and Road Port very close to the precincts of Parliament.
Why is it that this is not being brought to an end?
When a question was posed, it also came out that there is a Committee that was set up headed by Vice President Chiwenga. I am happy that you also talked about removing the 5% that is charged when one uses a point-of-sale machine. You even gave the threshold because if you do not charge the point-of-sale machines, there will be more uptake of this method of payment in rural areas. For example, groceries that cost $7 end up at a cost of $12, when using the swipe but if you pay using Unites States dollars or bond, it can cost around about $7. These are bread and butter issues affecting those people in the rural areas. I think this Bill should address these issues and if it does, we realise our economy will progress well. My question is, why is it that the informal market is still in existence? Hon. Sen. Sibanda once mentioned that issue. So I am supporting because that is where the root cause is that is causing challenges. With these few words, I hope the issues that I have mentioned, I hope they will be considered in the Bill. Our nation has a bright future. I thank you.
HON. SEN. MARAVA: Thank you Madam President. I would
like to thank the Minister for visiting Senate and bringing this seemingly good news. Madam President, I also want to welcome the tax relief measures that the Minister has brought into the House. I picked a few which I found highly useful especially for the community of Zimbabwe – the one on Value Added Tax (VAT) and the relief on capital equipment.
Madam President, without capital equipment, all our talk will just be day dreaming. We talk of production, income, offshore investments and so forth, but with relief on capital equipment, it means that our productive sector will be very useful. We can produce for the nation and this will enhance yields or high productivity. It will also end up giving us positive benefits especially in our industry and commerce. Madam President, the employment problem that we have in Zimbabwe will also be solved somehow to a certain extent if our capital equipment is imported at lower costs.
Madam President, repeal of the interest on penalties of tax arrears is a welcome move, but I think it is a welcome move not to the generality of Zimbabwe, but to a few people or institutions whom I would not exonerate from corruption because you would find that such people who have been fighting the systems before and finding themselves in a position of being able to fight additional costs or additional punishments will tend to continue with the same trend.
I welcome the importation of diesel which will be at a cheaper cost especially meant for the strategic points in our country, like the Minister has mentioned. It is a very welcome issue because we do have strategic points which must not cry of any shortages as they are not a want but a need for the nation. My question to the Minister is, I would like a bit of clarity as to which account or which institution of the country will be burdened with the transferred costs of this cheaper diesel because as the Minister knows, there is no credit without debit. I would like to know where these costs would be transferred to and who will burden those costs because it is a matter of shifting them. It is not a matter of erasing them.
Finally Madam President, there has been talk about review on benefits for the top brass of Parliament who have served for one term. There is very loud silence about the benefits of a parliamentarian who has served for one term. I felt that this thing cannot pass our noses without mentioning it. There is no top brass of Parliament without the structures of Parliament which include the parliamentarian himself.
There is a lot but I want to end there.
HON. SEN. RTD. GEN. NYAMBUYA: Thank you very much
Madam President. I am going to make three brief points. First of all, let me start by congratulating the Minister on the measures he has announced by way of trying to address the serious position which we are facing as a nation. I appreciate and sympathies with the Minister in that he has got very little space to maneuver. There is very little in terms of capacity at short term to try and address this serious issue.
So in all fairness, I think he has done a great job. We all know and appreciate that as a country, we are spending more than we are getting. In other words, we are living beyond our means and this is manifested by the fact that our budget deficit has increased. I think the Minister’s own forecast is talking about the possibility of a US$2 billion budget deficit and that is one of the reasons why we are experiencing the current challenges which we are facing.
As I have said, the measures which he has announced are quite bold and substantive to the extent that we need to give the Minister the room and space for him to executive what he has just announced. I just wish if we could improve on one or two areas. Firstly, on the issue of reducing what we eat to what we gather, I think all of us as a nation must participate in it. There is no point in talking about that and then we do exactly the opposite. We have got that disease as a nation. We want other people to tighten their belts whilst we loosen our belts. We must walk the talk as a nation.
I also want to encourage the Minister to look at other models in terms of ease of doing business. He has announced a number of measures which he would like to see implemented this year. One of my worries is our ZIA. If I compare it to other investment centres in Africa especially with the one for Rwanda, I think our ZIA is very much incapacitated. It does not have teeth. Investors come into this country and they go round in circles to the extent that some of them are put off by this rigmarole and bureaucracy which the founder of bureaucracy actually meant to improve doing business. But, in our case we are now using it as a means of slowing down business.
So, Hon. Minister, my strong recommendation is to give ZIA the teeth. If ZIA has approved an investment, everybody else should fall in line and ensure that investor is assisted to quickly set up shop. I also would like to make a point on dead capital which we have in this country. We have dead capital in some respects. Some parastatals which we have are dead and yet they have got the potential. I am aware that the Minister is doing something about it and I think we need to expedite the process of privatising those parastatals which can do better in private hands.
To a large extent, I think land has been dead capital unless and until we give value to the 99 year leases so that they become transferable and they become bankable. I would also like to commend the Minister on the measure he has taken to make the energy sector lucrative. Energy is a vital component of enabling that the economy ticks. One of the most important investments in this country that changes the face of this country and changes the face of Africa is Batoka.
Batoka is going to generate 2 400 megawatts. It is going to satisfy our needs in terms of energy and it is going to enable us to export revenue to the region and beyond, and we will earn revenue forever and ever. I really like to see this project expedited so that we quickly get on with it. It is a green project and it is renewable and one of the best ever things to do.
The energy sector has had its fair share of corruption and problems and a case in point is this Gwanda debacle which we are witnessing. I hope we achieve closure to it so that investors will know that when we detect something which is wrong we act on it, clear it and then we move on with our lives. With those few points Madam President, I wish to thank you.
HON. SEN. TAWENGWA: Thank you Madam President. I
would like to applaud and thank the Minister for tabling the Finance Bill in this House. I note that it is not punitive but very accommodating, progressive and I would believe that even businesses welcome this Bill.
I want to state a few issues that I have noted although I am very much aware we will be going to the Committee very soon but generally, it is investor friendly. It encourages investment and therefore production and of course eventually exports. We cannot remain a consumer country whereby we keep on consuming without any exports.
In this Bill, the opening clauses are not conforming to the actual clauses in the Bill itself. So, you will have to look at that later on. It is on the first three pages. Minister, you referred to the export of the 5% on the export of uncut stones which include marble and granite. Members here are aware that we discussed the issue of granite at length, whereby communities are not benefiting from stones found in their areas. If the Minister can clarify if Rural District Councils (RDCs) and communities are going to benefit from that five percent.
Hon. Marava referred to the issue of pensions for Members of
Parliament in terms of duration. The Bill refers to the duration of those who have served for two terms, those are the ones who will benefit from Pensions and those ones who will have served one term will get gratuities. The question should be why is it that one who has served for one term qualifies for gratuity and the Presiding Officers qualify after one term for pensions. Can the Minister clarify on that one?
You also mentioned the issue of hoarding cash; what is acceptable to be kept by individuals or businesses overnight and you said this has been increased from US$75 to US$200. Madam President, at a business level capacity, say for example one of these large supermarkets, they have ten points of sale at any given time and they need to keep a float which is needed for change. I witnessed this in Masasa whereby somebody had US$100 bill. That person was a foreigner, he tendered that bill and they wanted change. There was no change because there was no float within that organisation. Does this really work for these big supermarkets; may be individuals? We know things are tough and there is a problem of cash. I think there is need to think seriously regarding this issue. Well, we will deal with the other issues when we are in Committees. Thank you Madam President.
*HON. SEN. CHIMHINI: Thank you Madam President. I
believe all of us have heard of the Bill that has been brought by the Minister which shows that there is an intention to improve the state of the economy. I want to seek clarity on three questions from the Minister. First and foremost, we have shops that are charging value added tax at 10 or 15%. I do not know whether the money that has been collected by the retailers is being remitted to Government because it can be deducted from source but if one is not using a machine which is traceable, how then can we tell that you are receiving that amount?
Secondly, we have a deficit budget but at the moment we are talking about the Debt Assumption Bill which means that the Government is adding more debts. What strategies do you have to ensure that our debt is not increased because we seem to be in the habit of introducing Debt Assumption Bills for parastatals that are not performing well?
Thirdly, Hon. Minister, I would like to find out; what have you put in place as regarding ministries that you allocate amounts of monies, these ministries year in and year out overspend without Government’s approval? What measures have you taken to put to an end such behaviour because from the onset, they overspend well knowing that they are not going to be stopped and that no measures will be taken against them? I thank you Madam President.
+HON. SEN. KHUMALO: Thank you Madam President. I have
queries on three areas, maybe I am misunderstood. I would like to ask the question again. Sometime back, those people who used to live in the reserves ….
*THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: Order, may I
request that you debate in English. The Minister does not understand Ndebele very well.
HON. SEN. KHUMALO: The issue is on rural district councils, maybe I did not understand what was said. We used to pay for our vehicles at the rural district council and that money was useful to the council. It is now being paid at town offices, are they going to remit it to rural district councils so that they can get that profit which they used to get before?
On the ZINWA issue, we are saying we want productivity in agriculture. Sometimes, ZINWA does not provide water regularly and this affects production. I am mixing languages because I was not prepared to speak in English. ZESA is charging high prices to ordinary people who are doing agricultural business and the Minister is talking of more production. ZESA costs are very high for rural farmers. What arrangement has the Minister put in place to ensure that there will be no power cuts for continuous production in rural areas. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. MASHAVAKURE: Thank you Mr. President, I
have two things. Firstly, it is the issue of the enhancement of revenue collection which is required by the Minister of Finance and Economic Development. We can do that through saving the money that we will be having. For example, in other countries such as China, a lot of companies are set up there because the workers are paid low salaries but in Zimbabwe, it is known that if you go to the City Council, to ZESA, to the President’s Office or even at Parliament, if you are a sweeper you get a minimum of $700. A qualified teacher and other teachers are paid
$500. I am saying that our systems as we try to rationalise Government’s workers, we should rationalise the salaries that the workers get and people should not be paid because of an institution such as ZESA or ZINWA.
An Hon. Member earlier on spoke about ZINWA, in one of the Committees, we were informed by some stakeholders that ZINWA are intense in revenue collection but not service delivery. They do not have the capacity to construct dams or to sink boreholes, but once you have your borehole, they want to collect revenue from your borehole. And, should it break down, they do not actually repair it. That system of doing business makes our country expensive.
I urge you to look at the pricing system of the country so that we can be competitive in the region as regards Botswana, South Africa and such other countries. We were given other examples. One can have tiles made for less than $2, which is 10 Pula in Botswana. If we were to do that, we would be able to save in terms of the money that we would have collected and we will be able to run away from the issue of this perennial budget deficit. I urge you Hon. Minister to do something about this issue so that we can become a competitive destination in terms of our salaries and prices.
Lastly, there are people that are saying that they are buying currencies on the parallel or the black market and that is why the cost of goods is high. But, I still believe that all people that are getting their finances from the black market, the big question is, where are the people that are running the black market getting the currencies that they are using. If I go to my bank on a daily basis, week in week out, there is no money but these money changers have all the currencies ranging from the dollar, pula and rand? I urge you Hon. Minister as the Ministry, Treasury and the Reserve Bank to investigate the source of the funds that they use. It is not coming from outside the country but if it was coming from outside the country, we would say this was a foreign direct investment, but bond notes are a local currency. Where are they getting that money from? Please, get to the bottom of this and expose the culprits that are involved. It is high time that you name and shame them so that your system can become normal. I thank you.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: Thank you Mr. President. I would like to thank the Minister for presenting the Finance Bill in this august House.
But, as an extension to what the Hon. Member has just said about money laundering, I had this suggestion that, can we not have an Act or a law pertaining to these people who are selling monies everywhere so that we can bring sanity to our country.
Apart from that Mr. President, I also want to mention on the exchange rate where you will find that officially, we are told that the US dollar is equivalent to the bond note but physically, you would find that it is not, even if it is cash. Furthermore, when we talk about the exchange rate of the bond note to the South African rand, you will find that these days the rand is equivalent to the bond note. I do not know what is taking place and this has destroyed our people in the communal areas, especially those who are living nearer to South Africa because, their exchange rate has just been brought to nothing at the end of the day.
Also, I would like to give a comment because most of the issues have been said. On ZIMRA, Minister, you will find that our ZIMRA offices, especially at the border towns, are a sorry sight. They have roofs falling on them. I know that you had budgeted something for the rehabilitation of ZIMRA offices but, it is rather delaying because most of the ZIMRA offices are at the border areas and they are just at the entrance where foreigners and people coming from other countries will end up receiving Zimbabwe as economically bad because what they see at the border at the ZIMRA offices is not pleasing. I wish we could speed up the processes of rehabilitating those ZIMRA areas.
Lastly Mr. President, I would urge the Minister, when he talked about productivity and talking about agriculture as the backbone of our economy, if ever there are resources, they should be speeded up so that agriculture is done in a smart way so that we can produce, especially looking at the low veld areas where they only produce through irrigation systems and dams. If these could be speeded up? With these few words, I support this Bill fully. I thank you Mr. President.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. President, I want to thank all the Hon. Senators who have contributed and I take on board almost all their contributions. The contributions are very pertinent to the budget statement and to the trajectory that we have launched and I want to thank them very much for their insight into our challenges and also insight into the solutions that we are proffering in plotting our path out of our current challenges.
I need to say from the outset Mr. President that, most of the challenges that we are facing are legacy/historical challenges. But, we have to face them head on – we cannot wish them away and some of these challenges are basically touching on inefficiencies, malpractices and perhaps corruption in the past, leading to losses in state enterprises. We are now faced with the losses and rather than spend too much time in the past, I prefer to plot a path into the future and expend my energy addressing how we should look at the future. Precisely, that is what the Budget Statement is about. It is forward looking and not looking to the past.
Let me have the opportunity now Mr. President to respond to the questions asked. Hon. Sen. B. Sibanda, I agree with you entirely with respect to all the contributions that you have made. With respect to the productivity centre, this is an aspect that comes and falls under the Ministry of Labour and Social Services, and I will find out why this productivity centre is not taking off. I know the Zambian one is operational and I think these where established about the same time that we did. So, I need to acquaint myself fully with the productivity centre in Zimbabwe and understand what its challenges may be.
With respect to investments into energy, what we are basically saying is in order to encourage investments into irrigation; we are saying any investments into irrigation will be exempt from corporate tax. I think I gave the period of five years and thereafter, the corporate tax will be reduced. I think the current corporate tax may help me and should be around 25% or thereabouts. We are now saying after the five years, these investments will attract 15%. This is again to encourage investments into power generation.
As you know we have a policy to encourage independent power producer, whether thermal, solar, wind or hydro. In this respect, we are saying you are all welcome to invest in this sector, to enter into power purchase agreements with the national power company in order to sell or offload your power into the national grid and also if you want to export, you will be given a licence to export. If you also want, you can produce your power for a localised area to supply dedicated customers and then you have to enter into arrangements with Zimbabwe Transmission and Distribution Company to will your power to the customer. This is what we want to encourage.
I am happy to say that we have one or two hydro projects which are going to benefit under this incentive. We have a company which has now cumulatively in the Honde Valley, I think five projects, cumulatively now producing around 26/27 mega watts from hydro and this is a private sector company. Sometime in October or November last year, I commissioned a 1,5 mega watt hydro power station undertaken by Old Mutual. These are the investments that we are encouraging as we go forward. We can never have a situation where we have enough power. I say so because currently, we have a deficiency when our economy is depressed. When it takes off, as I am sure it is going to do, I have put my head out that we are going to grow this year at 4,5% growth and it could be conservative. Now that increased growth, require power in order to further propel it to greater heights.
I think you welcome the waiver on interests and penalties, and I think this is very good in order to give relief to the tax payers. On indigenisation, we did the correct thing. One piece of legislation which was acting as an obstacle to the operating investment climate for both domestic and external, was the indigenisation threshold of 51/49% threshold. We realised that this was an obstacle and we have since reduced and confined the 51/49% only to limit it for now to diamonds and platinum. The rest of the economies, whether extractive sector or otherwise, anyone or any nationality is welcome to invest.
We however, under the amendments Mr. President still have a reserved sector for our people because we believe that businesses like hair dressing saloons, bakeries, retail and wholesalers, we have the capacity for our people to operate in those sectors. But even there, we are saying those who are already in there and are foreigners, will remain provided that they register and tell us that they are already operating, and that they comply with our laws, bank their money, obtain trading licences and so on.
We are also saying in the area, for instance of gold panning, there cannot be any justification for anyone to come from abroad to pan gold in our country. So, that is closed totally to our citizens. Now, in the area of diamonds and platinum, this is only pending formulation of a
Diamond Policy and I want to say that already my colleague the Minister of Mines is formulating a Diamond Policy. The state of affairs is that we consolidated it under the Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company. That is the only company now apart from Murowa Diamonds which is 100% owned by RioZim, but we consolidated.
As we have consolidated, we find of course that in most of the claims the alluvial diamonds which are easier to mine are depleted. We now have to obtain specialised equipment to start conglomerate mining and also to explore for kimberlites. We are also advised that there may be other diamond deposits elsewhere outside the Chiadzwa area. For this we need of course to come up with a diamond policy that will clearly chart and give us a roadmap on how we are going to handle the exploitation of this resource.
The policy may also entail that for reasons of expertise and technology, we may need to consider going to bed with a world class diamond company. That again will be debated I am sure when the policy is formulated. We had the privilege Mr. President to accompany our President on the national visit to Botswana yesterday. We visited their diamond trading company which has state of the art technology in terms of sorting, cleaning, polishing and they actually sort according to sizes, shapes and colours. All done by the machines and we have agreed that we will send some parcels to them so that they assist in the polishing and also the sorting so as to add value to our diamonds.
I think that the diamond policy will also have to address whether we can link up and for temporary or in the short medium term, use the facilities that we found in Botswana for polishing and sorting our diamonds. They are already doing so for other countries like South Africa, Canada and Namibia. I think that discussions will be opened up with a view to pursuing that. So, the indigenisation threshold of 51/49% while confined to diamonds and platinum is just because we are expending formulation of a policy on this issue.
Mr. President, Hon. Sen. Sibanda raised a perennial issue since we do not have our own currency. I think for as long as we do not have our own currency, we are going to continuously have to harp on price differentiation, three tier pricing systems and so on. The explanation is very plain Mr. President Sir, for as long as we do not have sufficient foreign currency to meet our needs, I do not think we can entirely forget and rule out the operation of a black market. Currently, because of the measures that we took to enhance local production to raise the capacity utilization by our own local companies which are into import substitution, it has raised the demand for foreign currency. In others words all those local companies which are into import substitution, your Cairns and a number of those companies which are producing to meet local demand - are not exporting but they require foreign currency for capital equipment, raw materials and so on. That has raised the demand while maintaining the only 5 items which earn foreign currency for the entire economy for fuel and so on.
The solution which is not a one day event but a process is to diversify our exports, to increase our exports, especially to attend and look after those companies which are into export earnings. This is precisely what we did with the introduction of the bond note. The bond note is intended to encourage, incentivise exports and thereby also reducing the costs of production - which in this country is still very high. We are providing for instance tobacco farmers, 12.5%, for gold miners we are also doing the same and so on. The question always arises as to the availability of bond notes, may be of US$ which are found in the black market. It is very difficult to know where the leakages are but I can just give an example. Currently in order to encourage gold production and I need to point out here that from 2013, our gold production was at 12 metric tonnes. We have since moved this through the various fiscal incentives that we are offering to gold miners, reducing royalties and so on.
We have since moved the production to 24.8 metric tonnes as of last year and it is our intention to further push it to 30 or so tonnes this current year. Now, to do that, we have been encouraging - apart from the issuance of bond notes as an incentive for exporters; what we have also been doing is we have been paying artisanal miners about 70%, originally we are paying US$100 for $100 worth of gold delivered. We then negotiated with them to reduce the US$ component to 70% while paying the 20% to 30% in bond note. This is all in cash and we pay something like US$15m per week. So, sometimes it is not difficult to find out what could be the source of some of the money that could be on the market. When we reduced it from paying 100% in US$, we found that there was a fall in deliveries to Fidelity, suggesting now smuggling or selling it illegally to other purchasers. So, those are issues that we have to balance.
As I see it, some of these problems are a result of our success and I think we need to take them in our stride. I think that answers Hon. Sen.
- Sibanda. That answers the issues about confidence. I agree with you, it all boils down to confidence ultimately. Currently, through the new political dispensation, there has been renewed confidence, certainly the mood, the goodwill is there and I think as a country we have to ride on that goodwill so that we can use the goodwill generated amongst our people to move to the next level. We hope that through our policies we can receive their maximum support so that we do not falter. We are going to accelerate our economic reforms.
We are going to move full throttle on economic reforms so that we take advantage of the goodwill that has been generated by the recent leadership changes. We are going to certainly address the issue of state enterprises and I want to say that I am aiming to take a paper to Cabinet by mid-March that will spell out, recommend to Cabinet for approval which state enterprises must be collapsed, which must privatised, which ones we are going to invite technical partners to enter into joint venture with us, which ones must be strengthened even if they are doing badly, which must be strengthened in terms of management because of their strategic nature.
I am happy to say Mr. President that some work has already been done in that respect, for instance the National Railways has already concluded US$400m investment joint venture and I believe some rolling stock has already been provided which will be commissioned shortly. So, I am very optimistic that we will move with our reform agenda more expeditiously than ever before. It all boils down – I agree with the Hon. Senator to confidence and that confidence and trust must be earned and it is earned through actions, through implementation of what we say. It is only when people see that we are implementing what we say, it is only then that they will sit back and restore confidence in the Government.
Hon. Sen. Mumvuri thank you very much. Hongu agriculture musimboti we economy yedu. Pamusana peizvozvo mubudget iyoyo takati isusu tinofanira kugadzirisa nyaya yediridzo. Each year for the next 10 years, we are committing ourselves resources to develop 200 hectares under irrigation for each of our administrative districts and I think we have got something like 63 of them, for the next 10 years and this is outside the bigger irrigation schemes like Tokwe Mukorsi, Osborne and Dande et cetera, this is outside that. We are targeting communal old resettlement and A1 farmers. When we undertake this project, I think it will change the face of agriculture in the next 10 years.
With respect to water bodies, we do have something like 10 thousand water bodies already in the country. Some of them may be silting but we do have them already. What has been a problem in the past is that they have not been connected to the field edge of the farm. We just construct the dams and we stop there, we do not use and utilise and connect the water to the farmer. I want to say Mr. President that with respect to Kushinga I think that on the Sengwa Dam to my knowledge a team has already moved on the ground, if it has not already moved, certainly plans are afoot to start the construction of Sengwa Dam which is – I thought it was in Mt Darwin but I think it is Kushinga as well.
Power generation, thank you very much for your comments on power generation, I have already alluded to our policy to allow independent power producers. You have mentioned of course Kariba Dam extension which the first phase completed December; the second phase will be completed by end of March and will be commissioned in April. All told it will now add 300 megawatts to the national grid by the completion of the second phase.
Hon. Senator Mumvuri, you raised the issue about ZIMRA and Beitbridge and electronic transfer. We are fully conversant with the challenges that ZIMRA is facing. Some of them, we have been addressed but the point I want to make is that those challenges cannot be addressed overnight. Some of them require resources and others require change in management which we have been grappling with for the past two years.
We started with a forensic audit. When you are trying to reform an organisation you cannot do it blindly. You have to have a scientific approach. So we started with a forensic audit which was undertaken by two audit companies. They exposed a lot of corruption, a lot of malpractices in the organisation and through that audit, we retired or some of the managers had to resign on their own. Certainly, the top echelon left and we had to decide whether we should go further, but we ran the risk of ending up without any ZIMRA. So, we knew that we are preserving an element which may not have been desirable, but for good reasons there was no way we could collapse the organization. So we carried that way in the hope that we will infuse new management and also change the habits, attitudes and mindsets of those who are working in ZIMRA.
So, there are no problems of ZIMRA that I do not know. The only thing is - how do you resolve them? They are not resolvable overnight. They require time. Some of them, for instance, we have had to introduce a cargo tracking system. What was happening is that some of the fuel tankers were declaring at Forbes and Beitbridge Border Posts that they were destined for Zambia and DRC when in fact it was not so. So they would not pay duty. They then dumped their cargo here and we have instances where cargo was dumped in Chitungwiza, replaced with water and when it got to Chirundu, the tanks were full of water. So, those are matters which are being investigated and these are issues we can only address scientifically.
We have also introduced CCTV, but the major challenge is infrastructure especially at Beitbridge. I am happy to say, Mr. President, that just this morning we approved in Cabinet an award to Zim Borders Consortium who are going to do a $170 million expansion of the border area, to include the total infrastructure at Beitbridge which will include the accommodation that we give to ZIMRA. It also will include addressing some of the non core issues that have to do with the town itself – sewer ponds, storage dumps and things like that. So, I am happy that this is going to take off and the sooner it will take off, the better.
We have to move faster on modernising the border post because as Hon. Members may be aware, the Kazungula Bridge is now under construction. It provides an alternative route from South Africa from the south to the north. We are going to have to compete so that we still become either the shorter or the more efficient route through which goods and services can pass through our country. This also will of course include the dualisation of our Beitbridge - Chirundu highway. I am also happy to say that indications also show that there will be something that will take off in the area of dualisation with effect from end of March. So, we keep our fingures crossed that this will be so.
Mr. President, the Hon. Senator made reference to the manual system. Yes, the asycuda system collapsed in December, but fortunately, we have been supplied through the African Development. We have now sorted out that problem and it should be sorted out by end of this March. So, in the mean time maybe they are still using the manual system but in fairness to ZIMRA, we must say that in 2017, they collected above the targets we gave them. Notwithstanding the challenges that they are facing in terms of management and otherwise, they have been able to meet and surpass the targets that we gave them. So, as far as I am concerned, I think the reform of ZIMRA is on course and I would want Hon. Members to understand that reform of institutions is not a one day wonder.
I think Hon. Sen. Mumvuri, I have already responded to the issue about the three tier pricing system. As long as there is more demand on forex you will always find that you will not kill the black market entirely. We can try to regulate it, to try and minimise it, but it will be very difficult to kill it entirely. The solution eventually is to increase production, to increase exports, to make sure that we formalise the channels through which remittances from the diaspora flow into our market.
I thank you very much for commenting on the elimination of the 5c tax that we were imposing on mobile and electronic transactions. We have now removed it for any transactions of $10 and below. This is so because the bulk of transactions are within that range of $10 and below. I also need to say to the House that the future is in electronic transfers the world over. There will always be room for cash based transactions. Normally in most countries, 10% to 15% of the transactions will be
cash. In our situation it is 16%. So, the problem we are facing is not one of shortage but an inefficient circulation of cash.
The point raised by Hon. Sibanda that it is all under the pillows where in the past it would be in cattle, this time it is under the pillows. Some of it still remains in cattle but the bulk of it is under the pillow. Now, we can only get it out of the pillow not through intrusion into the privacy of our citizens, but through restoration of confidence so that they come and bank into the commercial banking system and then the money will circulate.
There has also been some improvement on that. I do not have the figures, but there has been some improvement. Some banking is now taking place, but I am not in a position to say exactly what the amounts are, but suffice to say about 85% to 95% of transactions in the formal sector are now electronic, and we are talking here of last year. Of the total value of transactions, $97 billion of them, about 96% of it was in RTGs electronic form. So, I think that we have used also some of our difficulties with respect to cash shortages to push forward the reforms, the adoption and acceptance of the electronic form of payment. As we increase in connectivity, we should find it that more and more people even in the remote areas will be going electronic. In fact, I must say that most businesses which refuse electronic payments will find that they are out of business and as a result, it has forced many businesses basically to accept the electronic system.
Hon Sen. Marava, I am amused that you refer to my attendance here as visiting the Senate. – [HON. MARAVA: I was welcoming you.]- Thank you very much. You welcome the exemption that we are giving. Let me take the opportunity Mr. President Sir, just to publicise that capital equipment is duty free. This is because we recognise that the manufacturing mining sectors have collapsed. So, we want to encourage investments into capital equipment.
I also need to point out that even the importation of most raw materials is duty free. This is just for the information of Hon. Senators. You also welcome the repeal on interest and penalties on arrears. The only difference I have with you is that you seem to think that the failure to pay taxes could be attributable to evasion or corruption. It may be, but I think the majority of cases is basically businesses which are facing viability challenges and it is for this reason that we decided that we intervene to assist them so that they do not collapse.
One of the reasons that is collapsing businesses and I will come to it later, is the labour laws rigidity. It takes time, effort and money to start a business. Most businesses start to make money and when things are good you expand and employ more people. When things turn for worse, there should be the flexibility to downsize the operation without having to end up spending a lot of time in the courts. That is where we need to work very hard so that we have labour law flexibility to allow companies to downsize as the need arises and wait for better times that will lie ahead.
Mr. President, let me just explain the point and I do not know whether it was in reference to this. We did allow duty free importation of diesel. This was only confined to three critical projects. The Kariba
South project during its construction, we allowed duty free importation of diesel because of the importance of that project to power generation. I also allowed duty free importation for the setting up of chrome fines mining in the Kwekwe area by African Chrome Fields.
This is because the information we have is that about 70% of our chrome ore is in the form of chrome fines and we do not have the technology to mine it as well as to refine it. So, for that reason, I allowed this company, African Chrome Fields duty free importation because they have to move from one valley to another where there is no electricity and this duty free diesel is to power their generators. Eventually, we also agreed that they will set up a refinery in the country. Currently, chrome fines are exported for refinery in South because that is where the facility is.
We are encouraging this company to set up a refinery in Zimbabwe and I think I have been assured and I am optimistic that a refinery will be built by August this year. We also agreed during the drought period especially affecting the Zambezi River, that we have an emergency diesel power generation in Seke, at Dema. That project which did not quite take off, we had also allowed and it operated for a short period because its electricity is more expensive than the one generated in Kariba. We also allowed duty free importation of diesel during the time it was operating. Those are the instances that I am aware of. The importation was regulated through CMED so that we keep an eye on what the volumes are and where the diesel is going.
With reference to the amendments to cater for pension for the Presiding Officers of the National Assembly and of the Senate, let me explain it this way. The current position is that MPs who serve for one year and I am talking of MPs from the National Assembly and the Senate, one term you are entitled to a gratuity. If you serve for two terms, then you are entitled to a pension. Generally, the nature of a pension is such that it is a life time thing and we have to ensure that you have served at least a sufficient period of time to justify a pension. We have considered ten years a sufficient period of time to justify a pension.
The nature of our Parliament, in total I think we are about 400 or so MPs. If all of us, every five years change, clearly the fiscus cannot sustain if we have to pay it by way of a pension. We will not sustain that payment until all those MPs die or what have you. So clearly, I want Hon. Senators to understand that the measure is in the interest of the economy. We cannot afford a one term period to justify a pension. Presiding Officers, we are just talking about four and again because they do not go for an election, the certainty of their coming back is also not quite guaranteed.
Hon. Sen. Nyambuya, thank you very much for your comments and I agree with you entirely that we have to walk the talk and we are doing our best in that regard. I must confess that reducing the wage bill is my worst headache. It is not easy more particularly when you are talking about retrenching people and so on. It is the most difficult task.
In the budget, we have retired something like 3 188 youth officers. These were basically youth officers whose job description was not satisfactory and they did not have the qualifications. So, these have been retired or retrenched.
Overally, my approach to addressing the issue of the deficit is to grow the cake, to increase the revenue base so that the wage bill will ultimately be a good proportion within a bigger cake. That is the approach that we are taking as well as of course, we have frozen a lot of the posts except for critical posts. We are also trying to achieve efficiencies in the way we run the civil service. We have also taken a decision to make those who have reached the retirement age to go on retirement. I think that will assist and help to inject new blood into the civil service and to create openings for younger officers who may be oppressed in their systems.
You raised the issue of ZIA. I agree with you. We have been reflecting on this issue about the lack of teeth by ZIA and the sense I have in the light of the new dispensation is that the enquiries that we are now receiving are overwhelming and it becomes very clear that we must put our Act together. It is a matter that we have been discussing to see what mechanism we can put in place on handling the enquiries that are coming from investors. I think that we should be able to do so in the next month or so.
Currently, we have a sense of being overwhelmed. The goodwill that has been generated by the recent changes in leadership is important for us that we come up with measures that will cope with those increased demands.
Hon. Sen. Nyambuya made reference to dead capital. Of course you are talking about state enterprises. Mr. President, there is a lot of dead capital in this country. The communal land is dead capital, the land under the Land Reform, until we give the 99-Year Leases, is dead capital. All our houses, we bought them cash, there are no mortgages, that is also dead capital. So, the extent of the dead capital in this country is enormous. That is why we now have interested people from outside who want to come and set up a mortgage company in order to encourage people who own these assets, motor vehicles furniture to borrow money to start up businesses on the security of those properties, for example motor vehicles, cars and so forth.
If we compare our country with other countries, we are the least mortgaged nation in the world in the sense that I have mentioned that we own cars, furniture, houses, properties and also land which is free from encumbrance. It is important that, that capital should be utilised and leveraged to bring in more resources for the development of our country. Hon. Sen. Nyambuya mentioned Batoka, yes, you are quite right, this will turn out to be the cheapest in terms of tariffs. I think we are talking of about US$3.5 04 per kilometer an hour. You must know that it is a joint venture with Zambia. The World Bank have given us resources to upgrade and update the feasibility study and we are having a meeting in Livingstone on Friday to see whether we can expedite the conclusion of the feasibility study.
Mr. President, there is a lot of interest from investors. We will not have any problem once the feasibility study is completed to secure funding because in terms of viability, it is second to none in the area of power generation. You mentioned the Gwanda solar project, these are issues we are looking into, to see how we can breathe new life into these projects.
Hon. Sen. Tawengwa, I thank you for the comment that we have come up with an investor friendly environment both for domestic and foreign. I want to emphasise on domestic investment because the structure of most economies worldwide is that at least 90 to 95% should be domestic investment. In other words, the economy should be in domestic hands. It is that 90% which will go out to look for that five percent or ten percent in terms of the needs of the economy for technology, capital and managerial skills and so on. So, I look forward to a stronger and entrepreneurial class in Zimbabwe which can identify Zimbabwe’s needs and connect Zimbabwe to foreign investors, for their expertise, capital and for their market. So, I want to emphasise the point about domestic market. We have to encourage exports as well and this is why there are export incentives through the issuance of bond notes.
I think we must also pat ourselves on the back because exports from last year have expanded; 36% from the previous year. We want to attribute this to the fact that we have this export incentive facility which is operational.
I think I have already answered the hoarding of cash. Basically it is a problem of trust and confidence. If people do not trust that when they put their money in the bank they can get it the next day that is what causes inefficiency circulation of money. We hope that as trust is restored, these things can be things of the past. On stones, at the moment the money is coming to the fiscus. For now, we are trying to encourage beneficiation and there are some companies which we have an agreement and understanding where they say we are looking for machinery and investments, can you give us more time and basically we are saying, we are postponing the imposition of the five percent. On the issue raised by the Hon. Senator about local communities, those are issues that come under the community ownership schemes. It is something outside what I am talking about.
Hon. Sen. Chimhini talked about the 15% VAT, I cannot give you a straight answer, my hope is that ZIMRA is collecting it. When it is levied, it is a ZIMRA tax which should go to ZIMRA but whether there is an efficient transfer or not of that 15% to ZIMRA that remains problematic. What I can say is that the amendment is providing letter for introduction of a virtual tax management system. What this will do is to connect, certainly starting with the big tax payers. It will have a menu which will allow automatic deduction and transfer at the till to ZIMRA. In other words, if it is 15%, automatically, as the till is run, it will be automatically deposited to ZIMRA but that is for another day. But we already have put an enabling provision in the law so that when we are ready, we can introduce it.
I made reference earlier, Hon. Sen. Chimhini about the fact that I am going to bring a Bill here, ZISCO Steel Debt Assumption. It is basically to clean up the mess of the past and we cannot avoid it if we want to go forward. Like in the case of ZISCO Steel, the investor we are attracting and with whom we hope to start operation by end of March, 2018, basically said he wants a free field an unencumbered asset. So, to do it, we had to clean up a balance sheet of ZISCO Steel and take it over as central Government. I hope that through new inflows of investments, new activities, taxes will increase and then that will capacitate fiscus to be able to retire a lot of these liabilities in the future. In the ZISCO Steel one, another investor is also going to take over our debt to KFW which is a Germany financial institution provided that we remain guarantor. So, we are agreeable to that, they are going to invest into the coke ovens and they are undertaking to pay off that debt. Those are some of the innovative measures that we are undertaking in order to allow us to move forward.
With respect to what we do to line Ministries, I think at the moment we are going to see less and less of over expenditures because clearly, we are also living from hand to mouth and because of that, we do not have the money for them to spend and where they do spend, we will not give the money to operate and it is really their problem. But, I want to say this Mr. President that, we have set up and strengthened the Accountant General’s Department. It now has two units – one unit which is dedicated to reading the Auditor General’s reports and following up on all the complaints that are made in the report so that they are rectified with the line Ministries. Also, that systems are put in place in order that, whatever is complained about will not happen again.
We also have another dedicated unit under the Accountant General’s Office to read the financial statements of parastatals and State owned enterprises, just to keep an oversight on their performance continuously and not wait until the horse has bolted.
Another measure that we are also introducing is to set up in each line Ministry an internal auditor and to set up an internal audit department again under the Accountant General’s Office so that the internal auditors of line Ministries will report on a daily basis to the Principal Internal Auditor in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development. That way, we think that the finances of Government will be in a better and sound condition. What we have to thrive to do is to prevent and not wait until a misconduct has been committed.
Hon. Sen. Khumalo, this is a matter which is not covered in this
Bill but, it is a matter that I want to promise to follow up. You raised the issues about vehicle licences where in the past they used to be paid to rural district councils. Now, I think that there were some changes and the rural district councils lost those incomes. It is something that I think we are going to discuss because my view is that, vehicles which stay in a particular town, Marondera for instance, should pay their licences to Marondera and Marondera Town Council should benefit from that income and also use it maybe for road network in that town. So, I think that these are issues of policy which I will certainly want to take up.
You also raised other issues to do with the cost of doing business and in this case, you were particularly targeting farmers – whether it is water, the price of water or the price of electricity. These are matters which are under active consideration under the ease and cost of doing business. We do not have very easy answers but it is a matter that we are addressing. I did address some of it in the way of reducing the excise duty on diesel, paraffin and petrol. This was to help to reduce the cost of production and we will continue as we go forward, basically looking at this issue about the cost of doing business.
Hon. Sen. Mashavakure, I have already alluded to the issue of the labour laws’ rigidity and the need to make it flexible. The costs of labour in Zimbabwe are very high. In fact, we are a very expensive area in terms of production compared to our neighbours and some of the reasons of course are that when we migrated from our Zim dollar to the US dollar, the mindset was that of Zim dollar and we equated literally the Zim dollar to the US dollar. Now, to get us out of that situation, it is going to be very difficult but it is a matter that we are seeking to address. And, the issuance of bond notes as an export incentive, it is intended to help reduce the cost of doing business in the sense that it helps quite a lot towards working capital for those companies which are into the export business.
Mr. President Sir, just to give you some comparison with respect to our cost structure, Ethiopia, which has about 116 million people, their average wage is $50 if not less. An engineer who has graduated is paid $100 per month and at most, $150 per month. Now in our case, and I think that Hon. Sen. Mashavakure mentioned it - a person who sweeps the floor is $400. So, you can imagine that if you were an investor looking at Ethiopia and Zimbabwe, where would you go? You will go to Ethiopia because it has a larger market, it has a lower cost of production and you can make your money because at the end of the day, the export markets are the same and so on. So, these are issues that we have to address and to address them collectively. So, we have to address the issue of our competitiveness as we go forward.
I have already answered Hon. Sen. Mashavakure about the black market. The answer may not be satisfactory but I think that I am nearer the truth in that the reality for as long as all of us want foreign currency, is not there – and, we end up doing funny things. Basically the black market is the result of the shortage of a very important asset, in this case, foreign exchange.
Hon. Sen. Mohadi, thank you very much but I have also answered you with respect to this muddy business of three-tier pricing system but I think that we are going to remain with this problem for some time but, as we enhance and increase our confidence, I hope that these issues will become less and less. You mentioned about ZIMRA officers and I think that I have already stated the award that we approved this morning to expand Beitbridge border post as well as to do some other non-core though for the town so that Beitbridge expedites smooth movement of people, passengers and goods. So, I hope this will be the case. So with those remarks Mr. President Sir, I think I have done justice to this.
I now move that the Bill be now read a second time.
Motion put and agreed to.
Bill read a second time.
Committee Stage: With leave, forthwith.
COMMITTEE STAGE
FINANCE BILL [H. B. 1B, 2018] House in Committee.
Clauses 1 to 39 put and agreed to.
On Clause 40:
HON. SEN. MUMVURI: If we are paying attention to detail, I want to draw your attention to Clause 40 (d) subsection (j), we have to say “…members of …” not “…members if the Committee on the
Standing Rules and Orders …”
THE CHAIRPERSON: Yes, thank you Hon. Senator. That is a typographical error. Thank you for being so observant. That is a grammatical correction. Thank you.
Clause 40 put and agreed to.
Clauses 41 to 46 put and agreed to.
Schedule put and agreed to.
House resumed.
Bill reported without amendments.
Third Reading: With leave, forthwith.
THIRD READING
FINANCE BILL [H.B. 1B, 2018]
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. Speaker Sir, I now move that the Bill be read the third time.
Motion put and agreed to.
Bill read the third time.
SECOND READING
APPROPRIATION (2018) BILL [H.B. 8, 2017]
Fifth Order read: Appropriation (2018) Bill [H.B. 8, 2017].
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Madam President, the
purpose of this Appropriation Bill is to give effect to the main Estimates of Expenditure for the year ending 31st December 2018 which I tabled to this august House on 7th December, 2017. Section 3 of the
Appropriation Bill is charging the Consolidated Revenue Fund with a sum of US$4 607 896 000.00 and this relates to the 2018 Vote Appropriations.
Section 4 of the Appropriation (2018) Bill is charging the Retained
Funds with the sum of US$412 566 000.00 and this is relating to the 2018 Vote Appropriations. This gives Madam President, a total charge on the Appropriation Bill of US$5 020 462 000.00.
In this regard, the Vote Appropriation presents an opportunity to contribute to a comprehensive and coherent phased strategy for addressing the widening macro-economic imbalances, guided by the policy direction given by His Excellency, President E. D. Mnangagwa, during his widely acclaimed inaugural address on 24th November 2017.
Madam President, the Vote appropriations seek to ensure realization of the overall objectives of programmes and projects under implementation by Government under the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation (Zim-Asset) as well as the Interim Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (IPRSP) for 2016-2018.
The 2018 Budget policy measures include among others:-
- Enhancing production across all sectors of the economy through giving greater and more urgent attention towards the supply side interventions;
- The policy measures seek to strengthening social safety nets in support of vulnerable groups in line with the objectives of our Interim Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (IPRSP) for
2016 to 2018;and also
- The policy measures seek to contain expenditures,
particularly employment costs in order to re-orient the thrust of fiscal expenditures towards infrastructure development, particularly in the energy, water, transport and ICTs subsectors.
Madam President, Section 6 (1) of the Bill will empower the Minister of Finance and Economic Development to transfer funds already approved by Parliament between Votes in respect of a function or responsibility transferred between ministries and departments during the course of the fiscal year.
Section 6 (2) of the Bill allows discretion to the Minister of
Finance and Economic Development to transfer funds from the
Unallocated Reserve which appears on the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development Vote to any other Vote, as and when the need arises in order to meet inescapable expenditures.
In addition, and if necessary, the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development can vary the amounts so transferred by taking back any surplus for reallocation to other ministries to meet demands that may arise. Madam President, I accordingly move that the Bill be now read a second.
HON. SEN. B. SIBANDA: Thank you Madam President, I have got a few comments, you are the only Minister here - who will defend the Appropriations to individual Ministers in prior answers to the Finance Bill, and you indicated that there are some areas you are not familiar with? I thought it would be better if individual Ministers came to account for their past expenditure and how they will handle future expenditure. Does their absence underline the peripheral constitutional role of the Senate in terms of financial matters? Secondly, I see there is a lot of retention funds and I do not want to refer to them individually but I assume that retention funds in Government technology is carried forward funds. I am also working on the assumption that every quarter each ministry reports to your Ministry in terms of utilization of funds. Why would we have close to half a billion dollars of money not utilised in any current year? That is if my observation is correct.
My last comment is, confirm that your office does in fact receive regularly, the quarterly reports from individual ministers. I thank you Minister and Madam President, I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Madam President, I thank
Hon. Sen. Sibanda for the contribution but just to say that the real reason why Ministers do not feel the need to come and defend is the nature of our budget which is just going to wages. There is basically nothing much that they can come to say and this is the area that we have to tackle to change that structure so that of the budget revenue, at least about 50% goes to wages and the rest to operations and capital expenditure. It is only then that I think Ministers can meaningfully come here to say no, this we are defending because we were given the money. Now, when we are giving all the money to wages, what do they have to say - very little.
So, I understand where you are coming from, but I want you to understand that collectively as a nation, we have to address the nature of the structure of the budget. Where there is spending, I know in some jurisdiction, in Tanzania for instance, only 30% goes to wages and 60% to capital formation. In our case, it is the other way round – 90% to wages and 10% only to capital formation. So, there is not much that anyone would want to say really, but we are working towards it. I hope that in the years to come, there will be some improvement on that score. Madam President, this is not just a problem of the central government; local authorities also have the same structure of budget. Also, State enterprises have the same structure of budget. It is like we are all living just for our wages and we do not worry about the generations to come, which is wrong. So, it is something that I think correcting it is not easy, Madam President, as I pointed out earlier.
So, we have had to be quite innovative in order to find money for infrastructures like Tokwe-Mukorsi completion. Right now, we are undertaking Gwayi-Shangani Dam. We are also undertaking Causeway and Marovanyati Dam and a lot of road construction that we have had to do through a lot of innovative measures so that we do not remain in a stand still position.
The retention funds are generally fines that we allow statutory bodies to levy and keep. I can mention for instance the Registrar General’s Department, when they charge for passports and other papers, they charge a fee and we have allowed them to retain. Only through the Finance Bill, we are now saying you cannot spend that money you are keeping anyhow. You must first prepare a budget and whatever money we allow you to keep; you must spend it towards meeting the budget.
Further to that, we have also insisted and this has been fully complied with; they used to bank all over the show, now they only bank all retention funds with the Central Bank and our Accountant General’s Department has a daily insight into what is going on there. The Minister has power in any event to use that money and appropriate it or transfer it to other inescapable expenditures because after all, these are just sub accounts of the Consolidated Revenue Fund. So, the money, I want to assure you, is well accounted for. I thank you Madam President.
Madam President, I move that the Appropriation (2018) Bill [H.B 8, 2017] be now read a second time.
Motion put and agreed to.
Bill read a second time.
Committee Stage: With leave, forthwith.
COMMITTEE STAGE
APPROPRIATION (2018) BILL [H. B. 8, 2017]
House in Committee.
Clauses 1 to 6 put and agreed to.
On Schedule:
HON. SEN. B. SIBANDA: Mr. Chairman, two issues under the Defence Vote, sub-Vote for War Veterans. I am aware that we have a serious problems with payment of fees for war veterans children, some very intelligent and others with only the surviving spouse who is the mother. They are going through hell. Minister, is that provision reasonably sufficient to address arrears and also to address current needs?
My last question is, I notice you have appropriated 10.4% of the
Health and Child Care. If you can remember, what was the appropriation last year? Has there been a significant increase in moving towards Abuja? Thank you.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Thank you very much. I
am indebted to the Hon. Senator for the contributions because they afford me an opportunity to clarify certain positions. We are fully aware of our obligations to the welfare of war veterans. More particularly so, now that there has been a very positive agent for change in our country and they need to be supported and strengthened. So, to that extent, we are committing ourselves to do everything in our power to clear all arrears as well as if the monies are not sufficient under that Vote. We can take it as I have mentioned from the unallocated reserve. We are certainly committed to fully discharge our responsibility in that regard.
With respect to the health budget, it was amended in the National
Assembly. At that point, we had moved the percentage of the Health Vote from 5% to something like 8% to 9%. With the amendment, we had to add an additional US$60 million that will put us at around 10% to 11%. I want to commit the Treasury that in the 2019 budget, we will fully meet the 15% Abuja requirement on health. So progressively, we are getting there. What we would need to urge the Ministry is to see that there is efficiency in the manner that they run our health system and that they try to encourage a better morale among the staff. I am committing myself that in the next budget, there will be 15% allocation of the budget to health. I thank you.
House resumed.
Bill reported without amendments.
Third Reading: With leave, forthwith.
THIRD READING
APPROPRIATION (2018) BILL [H. B. 8. 2017]
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): I move that the Bill be now read the third time.
Motion put and agreed to.
Bill read the third time.
On the motion of THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA), the Senate adjourned at Twenty Six Minutes past Five o’clock p.m.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Thursday, 15th February, 2018
The Senate met at Half-past Two o’clock p. m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE
DEATH OF MR. MORGAN RICHARD TSVANGIRAI
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: It is with a deep
sense of pain and sorrow that I have to inform this august House of the untimely death of Mr. Morgan Richard Tsvangirai, President of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) Party. Mr. Tsvangirai passed on yesterday in South Africa, after a spirited fight against colon cancer.
Mr. Tsvangirai served Zimbabwe with distinction as an accomplished Trade Unionist and Leader of the Opposition for many years as well as being Prime Minister of the Republic of Zimbabwe and Leader of Government Business in Parliament between 2009 and 2013. He contributed immensely to Parliament as a member of the Committee on Standing Rules and Orders during the same period in pursuit of Parliamentary democracy.
Parliament offers its unreserved condolences to the family, friends and the people of Zimbabwe during this dark moment in our political history. In this regard, therefore, I invite Members to rise and observe a minute of silence in honour of the late former Prime Minister, Morgan Tsvangirai.
All Hon. Members observed a minute of silence.
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: May his soul rest in eternal peace.
INVITATION BY KIDZCAN ZIMBABWE
TO PARTICIPATE IN ORANGE WEEK
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I have to inform
the Senate that Kidzcan Zimbabwe, a children’s cancer relief organisation is inviting Hon. Members to participate in Orange Week, 2018, which is a children with cancer awareness project from the 11th to the 18th February, 2018. All, Hon. Members are urged to create their own orange day by dressing up in orange and donating a dollar in order to support the worthy cause of Kidzcan. You are all kindly requested to give feedback to Kidzcan Zimbabwe, in the form of pictures and videos.
All proceeds will be used to assist children who are battling cancer. Please check your pigeon holes for further information on this.
ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE
*HON. SEN. SHIRI: Thank you Madam President. My question
is directed to the Minister of Labour and Social Services, Hon. Kagonye. We want to find out what your Ministry has in place in celebrating the
International Disability Day (IDD). At first, we were told that Disability Day was going to be held on the 9th February. The populace wants to know the correct position. I thank you.
*THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL SERVICES
(HON. KAGONYE): Thank you Madam President. I want to thank the Senator for that pertinent question. The International Day of Disability should be commemorated in December. Last year, in 2017, we did not manage to do the celebrations because of what was happening in terms of transition; the new dispensation. We want to celebrate this day but our guest Speaker has not yet given us a day. Once we get confirmation on the day, those living with disability requested that the Head of State be there, so once we get the date that he is available, we will make arrangements and ensure that we celebrate this day. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. SHOKO: To the Minister of Finance, I want to find out from him that a Commission was set up by the President that was dealing with people’s insurance when we adopted the US dollar. I remember the individuals who were part of that Commission. We have not heard the findings of the Commission because I believe that the
Commission finished its course but the findings of that Commission have not yet been made public. I think that it is now two years after the Commission completed its work and still we do not know the results. Most workers and so many people were affected by the transition from the Zim dollar to the US dollar.
Personally, I had taken an insurance that I thought would assist me when I become of pensionable age. I had one from Old Mutual and the other from ZIMNAT. I was given $10 and $7 and I was told that I did not have any more money. Those policies were paid up and that is what I got. So, we need to know the findings of that Commission so that people know whether they will get their monies if it is there. I believe that the money is there because we were short changed. That is my question Madam President. I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): I thank the Hon. Member
for the question. The short answer of course is that the Commission of Inquiry which looked into the conversion of pension and insurance values from the Zim dollar to the US dollar completed its work some time mid last year but the task of the Commission is a very complex one and it has taken time to try to unpack the report. We are now ready to have that report presented to the President and Cabinet and I am hopeful that the presentation will be done in the next two weeks after which the report will be available for publication to the public. I want to assure you that we are very aware of the importance of the report of that Commission of Inquiry, in particular with respect to those pensioners or insurance policy holders who feel that they might have been short changed.
The Commission has made some findings on all those issues but I beg the Hon. Member to allow me the next two weeks so that we have an opportunity to present the findings to the President and Cabinet after which the report will certainly be published. I thank you.
HON. SEN. TIMVEOS: Thank you very much Madam President.
My question goes to the Minister of Finance and Economic
Development, Hon. Chinamasa. The teachers and other civil servants –
I had a meeting with them and some of them are saying that they have
not had their salary increment for the last seven or eight years. They are equating that prices are going up and the economy is not good but they still have the same salaries. So, they are wanted to find out what measures you have put in place in addressing their salaries. I thank you Madam President.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): I thought that the Hon. Member when meeting those affected; the teachers and nurses would have given them the answers that I continue to give in this Hon. House and the answer basically is that, currently we are living beyond our means. Ninety percent or so of our revenues are going to wages and none to operations or capital formation. That it is very important if we are to restructure our budget and the nature of our expenditure, we have to address the issue about our expenditure. If we are to succeed, it means that all of us must tighten our belts and not loosen them.
So far, I thought that the civil service and those who are in the
Public Service understand that the circumstances are very difficult for all of us and that we would make a mistake to print money in order to meet salary demands. So, there has been a freeze as you know of posts in the civil service just as also we have not been able to adjust the salaries of the entirety of the civil service. So, I think that is the answer that I would want to give at this juncture. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. MANYERUKE: Thank you Madam President. My
question is directed to the Minister of Finance and Economic
Development. My question is in relation to finance. As a nation and as Government, what measures have you put in place in terms of the cash shortages being experienced? There is no cash in the banks and we are struggling to get any cash. I thank you Madam President.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): I was on my feet the
whole day yesterday and much of the time that I took yesterday was to explain precisely the challenges that we are facing in the area of cash shortages. In short, the cash shortages are arising not from shortage but from an inefficient circulation of money arising from loss of confidence and trust.
I did explain Madam President that in most jurisdictions, the cash based transactions constitute about 10% to 15%, which means, of your total value of transactions 10% to 15% of it should be cash based. It means that cash should be in circulation and available for the public. In our situation, we are at 16% and even when we are at 16%, that money is not circulating. Even if the Central Bank Governor were to pump billions, whether of bond notes or of US dollars, that money is withdrawn and it is never re-deposited in the banks. When you have that scenario or that situation where money is just being withdrawn and not being re-deposited, it means that it is not circulating. The circulation is inefficient and you cannot run the economy that way. Now, when we inquire into the reasons, it is actually boiling down to lack of trust and confidence. I want to say that, because of the recent changes in the new dispensation, I am informed that there has been some improvement.
People and businesses depositing their daily takings, so hopefully, we must continue inspiring each other so that confidence is restored and we run our economy in the normal way. Thank you.
*HON. SEN. MURWIRA: My question goes to the Minister of Finance and Economic Development, Hon. Chinamasa. We are using plastic money but the challenge that we face is that when we go to buy goods, owners of the shops want cash. What measures have you put in place to ensure that these people accept plastic money?
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Let me say Madam
President that the future of any economy, and this includes the future of this economy is in the direction of electronic payments. Some of the challenges about cash shortages are assisting us to push and change the mindset of our people to accept transacting business through electronic and mobile transfers. As I speak to you, of the $97 billion transactions that were made last year 95/96% was electronic and the balance was through cash. Again indicating and illustrating the success of the movement towards settling claims of payment electronically.
I want to say whether you go to the USA, UK or India, that is the direction. In fact India basically abolished any cash transactions, insisting that transactions should be electronically. Why electronically? Because as we try to fight corruption, much of the corruption is promoted through usage of cash, people moving with suitcases of cash and so on to bribe people. When transactions are done electronically, there is a paper trail which inhibits those who would want to commit corruption. I do understand madam President that yes; there is a problem with some shops, but my own view is that those shops which are insisting on cash are losing business because you cannot transact in cash if the cash is not there and it is clearly not in their interest.
The information we have is that most businesses, including those at Siyaso are transacting business electronically through mobile and so on, including some places in remote areas. I want us to get into this frame of mind that yes, there will always be that portion of activities which will be transacted on a cash basis, but the bulk of transactions in the future are going to be electronic and the sooner we accept that, the better for our good health. I thank you Madam President.
HON. SEN. KHUMALO: Thank you Madam President. I will refer my question to the Minister of Finance and Economic
Development in the absence of the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Services. My question is in regards to what is happening in Hwange. What is the policy regarding the payment of permanent workers in Hwange, because we see that those who are contracted are paid but the permanent workers are not being paid monthly, like those on contract. What is happening to the children of the permanent workers who are not been paid? What is the Minister doing about that, because the contractors whom we can liken to small houses – the ‘small houses’ children eat because the husband, the Minister pays them while the permanent – the wife and her children are not being given any money. Why are the permanent workers not being paid while those on contract are receiving their wages?
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): I may not have the full
answer or be in a position to give a full answer, but what I know about Hwange Colliery Company is that the company has gone through financial difficulties for many years. It is true that through sub-economic activities taking place there and no production of coal; it has not been able to pay its workers for 3 – 4 years. So, it has a problem which I consider a legacy problem where for instance the company is overemploying. I think 3 000 workers where to do the work you need only 600 employees and it has not been able to take the necessary decisions to retrench. So, it has carried this burden which means it may never resolve the issue unless it gets to a position where it says we are cutting down on the workforce in order to remain with an efficient workforce which the company can sustain.
One of the challenges Hwange Colliery faces is also that it has moved away from its core business. Its core business is to mine coal and not to run a township, incur the responsibilities of providing accommodation, water, sewer charges and so on to a township of maybe around 5 000 – 6 000 people. That is not its core business. So, the policy of Government is basically to get to a position where we divest that social responsibility away from Hwange Colliery and vest it in a local authority which may need to be constituted. I think the Minister of Local Government and National Housing is looking into that matter. For as long as Hwange Colliery Company is responsible for none core undertakings, it will never be viable. If it is in the core, it should be viable and those are some of the things that make it unviable.
I also need to remind the Hon. Member that Hwange Colliery Company is a private company under the Companies Act; but that is besides the point. The question you raised about why employees of a contractor, I think they are subcontracting the mining of the coal and the workers are not being paid. I think precisely that - the coal is paid not by Hwange Colliery it is paid by ZPC who have got the thermo power stations.
I suspect in order to get the coal being delivered regularly; they pay direct to the contractor. I am only surmising, I am not saying that is the position. I suspect for Hwange Colliery to have coal, they must pay the contractor so that the contractor delivers to ZPC. For ZPC to ensure continuous supply of coal, it will need to be assured that the contractor’s workers are satisfied and that they continue to mine coal. I hope that I have somewhat tried to address the questions which were raised by the Hon. Senator. I thank you Madam President.
HON. SEN. B. SIBANDA: Thank you Madam President. My
question is directed to the Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs. Minister, can you explain the process and duration taken when one reports a case to the Anti-Corruption Commission. Just to open up your mind, I have reported a case twice and I have never had a response one for close to a year now and the follow up close to two months. I am wondering if ever they even acknowledge receipt.
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Thank you very much Hon. Senator for the question seeking clarity to know the processes taken upon reporting a case to the Anti-Corruption
Commission. I will try to answer it by way of saying that the policy of
Government is that any case that is reported, be it to the police or AntiCorruption Commission, the investigations have to be expedited and the case put to finality and the person who reported should be advised within a reasonable time. However, the issue that the Hon. Senator is referring to is very specific to him, perhaps maybe if he can furnish me with details so that I can transmit them to the Anti-Corruption with a view of finding out why it took that long to respond to the complaint that he raised. I thank you.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: Thank you Madam President. First and foremost Madam President, I have a concern over the Ministers - I am directing this to the Leader of Government business. We were expecting Ministers to be here, but we only have got three Ministers. You will find that the Ministers we have here are the ones who are consistently here I think by them being here all the times, most Hon. Senators do not have new questions to ask them because they are always here. I plead with you to whip the other Ministers to be in this august Senate during question time because this problem has been ongoing ever since. Sometimes we could even forego this question session just because maybe we will be having one Minister or a Deputy Minister which is not good – [HON. SENATORS: Hear, hear.] - I just thought maybe the two Houses are the same and should be treated the same.
I have a question also Leader of the House. Minister, we have some areas in Zimbabwe that have not even received the first rains and they are facing a serious drought. I do not know whether you have heard about that, and if you have heard anything, what is Government doing about that? I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA) Yes, we are fully aware
Madam President that there are areas which have not received rainfall. In fact, I would say that throughout the period even after the bumper harvest, we continued to receive reports of areas which had not had adequate harvest or any harvest at all. The Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare continued to give support through food handouts. Those food handouts have continued up to this day and I want to say on Tuesday, we received a report from the Ministry of Labour with respect to the tonnage of maize that is being distributed to those areas where rains have not come or who have not had harvest where assistance is needed.
We have enough maize in stock to look after the welfare of our people. No one should starve, even as of now, are silos are full and
Treasury is doing all it can to make sure that no one will starve. So, the Hon. Member needs to give us specific areas and she can be invited to give these reports or to submit this to the Minister of Labour and Social Welfare, so that they know which areas may have been overlooked in the redistribution of food handouts. I thank you Madam President.
HON. SEN. CHIEF NGUNGUBANE: Thank you Madam
President for recognizing me. I would want to direct my question to the
Minister of Finance and Economic Development. I want to find out from him when Government is going to pay the outstanding bonuses to civil servants? I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): I thought that I made it
clear Madam President that in my 2018 Budget statement that we will honour the commitment to pay bonus to civil servants. This will be staggered in the same way that we did last year. Also to remind Hon. Senators that we are paying the 2017 bonus in 2018 but these will be paid – I am not quite sure of the exact staggering dates, but clearly it will be paid in a staggered form in the same manner that we did last year. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. CHIEF NEBIRI: My question is directed to the Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development, I want to find out what plans they have in place in terms of the Binga – Karoi Road. My request is that if the road cannot be tarred, gravel can be used because is the road that links us from here to Victoria Falls. I thank you. *THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Thank you Madam President, I want to thank Hon. Sen. Chief Nebiri for the question that he has raised. Madam President, the Ministry of Transport will only attend to road construction when it has received money from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Developing. Currently, the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development is experiencing financial challenges. As Members of Parliament, we are the ones who pass the budget and agree on the allocation to the Ministry in order to address the issue of road infrastructure.
This year, I went to Mashonaland West and I met Members of Parliament as well as those responsible for road infrastructure I informed them about the money that will be availed to them for construction of roads, but for the roads that remained, we informed them that we will continue to seek funding under the PPP programmes, even with those who are within the areas or the diasporians in order to fund these projects.
The road that he has mentioned is a very important road and currently, we are in the process of seeking partners to address that problem. With the current heavy rains, I know most roads have been affected, but I am sure that if we happen to get partners, we will be able to address the road that he is talking about. Hon. Chinamasa, who you see here is actually trying hard to get resources in order to address our road network, but like I said, we will also try to get partners to address the challenges of roads.
*THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: Thank you
Minister. This is Hon. Dr. Gumbo, Minister of Transport and
Infrastructural Development. We have Hon. Bimha, Minister of Industry, Commerce and Enterprise Development. So, the Ministers are increasing in number.
HON. SEN. MUSAKA: I thank you Madam President. My
question goes to the Minister of Transport and Infrastructural
Development, Hon. Dr. Joram Gumbo. I wanted to ask about roads, but
I think he has given an answer. I would then want to give a proposal to him regarding the Kadoma-Sanyati-Nembudziya Road. It has just been neglected.
Sometime last year, the Minister said it had no takers when he had put on tender all the roads; that one could not have a taker and it is quite a deplorable road. I would suggest that all the money that ZINARA gives to the Rural District Councils, you go into some kind of stage theory development - take from Kadoma itself or Chakari to somewhere in Milverton. He knows what I am talking about. You may not know about it. That is about a distance of maybe 40km. Tar it with that money instead of giving it to the Rural District Council. They go all the way just heaping up gravel and when the rains come, just the whole thing is washed away. I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Thank you Madam President and thank you Hon. Senator. I thank you for the advice. I will follow it up because I think he is giving me very good advice and suggestion that the road should be reallocated to some other authority other than the Rural District Council which is the responsible authority for now. Madam President, it is a specific road and it would have been better for me if the Hon. Member would have put it in writing so that I would have known who actually the responsible authority is and why they have failed to perform.
There is mention about ZINARA. ZINARA is a road funder and for now they have already given allocations to all road authorities, otherwise I would have known exactly who to target before coming to give you a satisfactory answer. Right now, I could just be waffling because it is a specific issue. It is not really like a kind of policy issue, but I still accept the question. I think we can do justice if you can put it in writing, state what the problems are so that I can bring a proper answer to your satisfaction. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. MASHAVAKURE: Thank you Madam President.
My question is directed to the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning. I think it is three years now since we passed the Sovereign and Wealth Fund and is there anything in the Sovereign Wealth Fund?
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): It is true that yes, we did pass the legislation to set up a Sovereign Wealth Fund, but if the Hon. Member will recall the funds to go into the Sovereign Wealth Fund were to come from royalties on minerals and also maybe through subversions from the National Budget. Given the fact that we are living from hand to mouth, as I have already explained, clearly, there is no scope as of now, no capacity to mobilise any resources that can be deposited into the Sovereign Wealth Fund. So, the short answer is that there are no funds yet into the Sovereign Wealth Fund. Yes, a body has been appointed preparatory to a growing economy which will then be able to make it possible for resources to flow into the Sovereign Wealth Fund, but of now that is not possible. I thank you Hon. President.
HON. SEN. BUKA: Thank you Madam President. My question is directed to the Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, Hon. Ziyambi. What measures have you put in place to prevent child marriages so as to protect the girl child? I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Thank you
Madam President. I would like to thank the Hon. Member for the question and state that processes are underway to ensure that we bring a Marriages Bill into Parliament. I am aware that Parliament, through the SADC Parliamentary Forum, has conducted public hearings on this matter and their recommendations are going to be taken on board. So yes, definitely something is being done. A Bill is being crafted to ensure that we take care of these issues. I thank you.
HON. SEN. MARAVA: Thank you Madam President. My question goes to the Hon. Minister of Industry, Commerce and Enterprise Development, Minister Bimha. Minister, there has been talk about ZISCO Steel and it has been mentioned in the 100 Day National Plan of resuscitating industry and commerce and it was going to help a lot in the nation, particularly Bulawayo industries. May you tell the nation how far you have gone with the resuscitation of Zisco industries since it is the provider of raw materials nationwide and in the southern region?
THE MINISTER OF INDUSTRY, COMMERCE AND ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. BIMHA): I would like
to thank the Hon. Member for a question which I think is very important to all of us, the reason being that steel processing or steel making can be used as a barometer for any country’s industrialisation. If you have a vibrant steel making industry, chances are that you will also have a vibrant manufacturing industry but more importantly, it is not just the employment creation, the production of goods from Zisco that we cherish but it is more of its impact on downstream industries.
It is true that there has been a lot of talk and I want to mention Madam President, that in the past it is because of that too much talk that there was no progress. When you have huge projects like Zisco, you have to be cautious on how often you talk about it and what you say about it. This is because these are sensitive investments and therefore, sometimes what we say in public might also make the investor to feel uncomfortable.
As a result of that, for the past few months, we have tried to continue discussing with the investor without making noise about it, but not having made that noise does not mean that nothing was happening. So, I think to give you comfort, what I can say is that we are very close to seeing the fruition of that investment. You are right that it is on our 100 day programme. In terms of finalising the implementation modalities, there are certain conditions which we call conditions precedence that we have to fulfill in order to realise this investment, things that we as a Government must do first before the investor comes on board.
I would like to say to you that all these conditions precedence have been fulfilled. The first one was that the investor wanted the project to be declared a national project status and that has been done. There was also need to declare steel processing as a special economic zone and that has been done. The third aspect was for Government to assume the Zisco debt and I would like to say that this is now under way. It is in the process. There are few areas that we still have to finalise. In other words, we are discussing with the Ministry of Mines to identify the areas where the investor will get his call and areas that he will get the other much needed raw materials and that process is underway. We do not see any problems as we move forward.
We believe that by the end of the 100 days, we will have finalised the implementation modalities and already, there are people going to Zisco time and again, engineers going time and again to make their assessments to plan in terms of going into the future. So, I am very confident that as we go forward, we will realise the fruition of this very huge investment which has got a bearing in terms of our own industry. We import a lot of steel products at the moment and once this project is on stream, we will not be importing. Therefore, we will make savings.
Over and above that, if Zisco comes on stream, we will be able to produce more than what we require and therefore, the surplus will also be available for exports, and also generating the much needed forex.
More importantly, which is different from what Zisco used to produce, Zisco at its time used to produce what is called long products and the new arrangement with the new investor is that we go beyond the long products. We will now be producing what are called the flat products which we are importing at the moment.
So what is important is that we will go beyond that and go to the tail end of the value chain where we will be producing stainless steel. What will come out of this project is better than what used to be and more beneficial to the country in terms of forex, employment generation and feeding into other industries in Midlands, Matabeleland as well as in other areas of the country. I thank you Madam President.
*HON. SEN. CHIPANGA: Minister, you brought in Statutory Instrument 64 and we were excited about it. Now, we realise that the prices are going up every day and we are beginning to notice shortages. Can you enlighten us where we stand because we thought Buy Zimbabwe and Statutory Instrument 64 will balance the situation? I thank you.
* THE MINISTER OF INDUSTRY, COMMERCE AND ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. BIMHA): Thank you
Madam President. I want to thank the Hon. Member for the question that he raised. We have two things - the SI 64 and the issue of prices. These two issues are different. I will explain how they are different. There was a time because of the challenges that we faced in our economy, we got to a point of buying everything from outside the country. We were importing and we got to a point of importing mineral water from South Africa as if we cannot produce our own mineral water. We got to a point of buying everything now and again. To others, it was a source of income as it was business and yet we can produce some of these products.
So, in importing from South Africa, we were exporting jobs. As a
Government, we realised the need to come up with the Statutory Instrument to try and protect the industries that are producing products in Zimbabwe. We did not ban importation but we said that what we are producing should not be imported. We took up a few products that we knew we could not produce, but most of the things we were importing from outside especially South Africa. When people made noise in South Africa, we went there and talked to them to say that these are only a few products that we are no longer buying but we are only talking of few products and yet we are buying the bulk of the products from you.
As a Government, they admitted that they saw the logic of why we were doing that but those were the problems with the industrialists especially those who had migrated to South Africa who wanted to buy goods there and sent home. Madam President, SI 65 assisted us a lot. There are figures to support how SI 64 has brought in positive developments. There are companies that have come up because of SI 64. There are companies in South Africa that were selling things in Africa, so when they realised that we were shutting them out, they decided to come and invest in Zimbabwe. As they came in, they set up companies such as Willodon in Mutare. They used to bring in cooking oil such as delite, so through, SI 64, delite cooking oil was no longer coming in, so they came and set up their company in Mutare. That company is already operational and they are producing cooking oil, soap and margarine. Now, they are importing to other neighbouring countries such as Mozambique and it is bringing in foreign currency.
Madam Speaker, we have a company that was in Mozambique producing powdered soap. Boom was being imported from Zambia but through SI 64, owners of the companies decided to come and set up a company here in Zimbabwe. So, they have set up and they are waiting to open their company. They are now producing boom in Zimbabwe. So that SI 64 has attracted investors. What it means is that those who were producing here are now experiencing competition and need to be competitive as well. That also assists in the sense that whatever they are producing can now be exported and brings in forex which is what Hon.
Chinamasa wants as well as the Reserve Bank Governor, Dr. Mangudya.
Madam Speaker, in September, there are people who spread rumours that there is a shortage of forex, so prices will go up. When a person hears such news, what you do is that you run to the nearest shop. If you used to buy one bar of soap, you will end up hoarding because you have been told that there will be shortages and this resulted in panic buying. What it means is that if you come to my shop with high demand of that product, I will raise the prices. So, the question of demand and supply is the one that caused price hikes. Others took advantage of the situation and started hiking prices even of non-basic commodities. So, these have nothing to do with SI 64. Despite that, measures were put in place to address these issues, prices then started going down. So, we engaged industrialists and they explained to us on why their prices were high. After that, we realised that prices started going down.
Madam President, in other areas, prices were going up because of the cost of production and the Government reduced the price of fuel. So, after that, most industrialists reduced the price of their goods. We are continuously monitoring the situation and have a branch called National Competitive Commission. Their mandate is to go sector by sector. Those in soap production and other goods want to find ways of pricing different products. They want to look at the cost of production and also the going price on the market and they will determine whether the price on the market is justifiable. So, now they are coming to us on their own and informing us that because you have reduced the price of fuel, we want to reduce our prices. So, they are reducing prices but there are other people who are unscrupulous; unscrupulous elements are found everywhere. When others are reducing, others are hiking their prices. So, we requested that the different sectors should put their prices in the paper so that if they are into mealie meal production, they will give us their wholesale price and their retail price so that the consumers are aware of the prices. If the prices are high, they can go and report such unscrupulous means. Others were accusing each other because there are people who order at wholesale price and go and sale at retail price. Sometimes you find the price of a commodity has gone up, then if you go to the wholesaler, you find that the wholesaler has not raised the price but the retailer will have increased the price. So when people see the price hikes, they think that it is the producer who has hiked the prices but it is not the producer but the shop that is in your area.
So, we need to monitor and see how the producer is doing it and at what cost and also the price of the retailer for us to see who is the culprit because if we do not do that, you will paint everyone the same way. So the issue of engaging them to understand how the pricing system is going helps us to see the culprits. We do not want others to be punished for unlawful dealings of other people. I thank you.
Questions Without Notice were interrupted by THE HON.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE in terms of Standing Order No. 62.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: Madam President, I propose that time for Quesitons Without Notice be extended by ten minutes.
HON. SEN. TAWENGWA: I second.
HON. SEN. SHIRI: Thank you Madam President, I want to find out where people can go and report because there are other people who sell expired goods, how do we work with the Consumer Council of Zimbabwe? I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF INDUSTRY, COMMERCE AND ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. BIMHA): I want to
thank the Hon. Senator for the question. I like your question because in the next few days, if all goes well, you will be debating the Consumer
Protection Bill. Currently, we have the Consumer Council. Consumer Council is a toothless bulldog. Consumer Council can monitor what is happening but there is not much that they can do about it. All they can do is to bring a report to say that they went to such a place and the status of the prices is this but they cannot do much about it. So, we are bringing in a Bill that will give the Consumer Council power. Most of the things we will not be doing because it will be done by the Consumer Council. I do not want to say much about it because that is why you are here. You are the ones who are going to debate that Bill and, it will empower the Consumer Council. In other countries, the Consumer Council actually gives rulings on the issue of prices. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. CHIEF NTABENI: I will be brief Madam
President. The Minister said that we should not say a lot of things on ZISCO Steel. ZISCO Steel cannot operate without the Railways. For us to have confidence that ZISCO Steel will operate very soon, the
Railways is facing challenges and Sables is also facing challenges. Those are the companies that enable ZISCO to operate. ZESA is also facing challenges but the Minister said very soon, it will be operating.
So, I need to have confidence and tell people that get prepared.
HON. DR. BIMHA: Thank you Madam President. I want to
thank the Hon. Chief for the question. Just to clarify one thing. I did not say that in 100 days, ZISCO will be operating. It is not that we will be producing steel. We said, we will finalise the implementation matrix so that they can start operating. Now, you are very right that for ZISCO to operate, you need a vibrant transport system and I am very happy that the Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development is here and he is actually ahead of us because I am sure that by the time that we operate, the railway system will be up and running.
The new investor does not need Sables. Sable Chemicals was supplying oxygen to ZISCO. The current investor will put his own captive plant that will supply the power for his plant. In addition, the investor will also be utilising our coal resources to put up his generating capacity to provide power to ZISCO and additional surplus power to the national grid. Now, those are the issues that we are discussing at the moment to ensure that we are ready for this investment and all the various Ministries and departments are very supportive of this investment. Therefore, I see no problem in getting the support from the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development, Ministry of Energy and Power Development and even the Ministry of Water. I thank you Madam President.
*HON. SEN. TAWENGWA: Thank you Madam President. My
question is directed to the Minister of Finance and Economic Development, Hon. Chinamasa because he is the one I engaged before on the issue of schedules on fines, when you scrapped off the $100 that was suggested in the National Assembly. I raise this because what we are doing as drivers is that we are proceeding when traffic lights are red. When we stop and respect the road regulations, a vehicle can come from the other side and neglect the stop sign. Our request is that, you look into the schedule of fines because, I think that we need deterrent fines to ensure that this behaviour does not persist than to let people do whatever they want on the roads. I thank you Madam President.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): I thank the Hon. Member
for his question but, I thought that there are two aspects to the problem of drivers driving through a red robot. Firstly, there is no one to arrest them. Generally, these incidences happen late into the night. But anyway the long and short of it is that there are no people to arrest them as of now. I have been in situations where I come across drivers, certainly maybe to my side, who will just pass through and I remain standing but I also see that there is no policeman around to follow up and chase that offending driver.
The other aspect of your question of course is the question of fines. I am not sure that going through a red robot does not attract a fine. They still do. But, I think that the first question is, let us get the people
arrested first before we can even worry about whether the fine is heavy or light. Currently, they are not being arrested and I think that is a matter which Madam President, I will certainly refer to the Minister of Home Affairs so that it can be attended to. I think that we have now got into a situation of impunity from arrests; we commit crimes especially of that nature without any regard to whether or not the law will take its own course. So, I will refer that matter to the Minister of Home Affairs.
HON. SEN. KHUMALO: Thank you Madam President. In other
countries, they put cameras so that you do not have the police every time. You have cameras so that those people can be followed even if it is at night or during the day. The people who pass when the robot lights are red – why not install cameras?
HON. CHINAMASA: I agree with the Hon. Senator that the
installation of cameras is the way to go but technologically, we are not yet there and I do recall that at some point in time, cameras were put but there were no resources to maintain and sustain them. When you have a system like cameras, you need to have resources to maintain and sustain, and always upgrade the technology. That, I think we do not have. When you read about other countries like the United States, any crime which is committed on the streets is captured on camera and the police are able to follow up afterwards. I think technologically we are not yet there. I thank you.
*HON. SEN. MUMVURI: I think the Ministers are performing
well, though they are very few. I would appreciate if all of them would come. My question is directed to the Minister of Transport and
Infrastructural Development. Firstly, allow me to thank him for the work that he is doing and also for the measures that he has taken with the Vehicle Inspection Department to reduce corruption. We heard there are wagons, coaches and locomotives that came in. May you continue to do this in this new dispensation.
My question is on ZINARA, the funds that you give to the local authorities. My council is one of those that failed to utilise the funds.
May you enlighten us on the operational policies that govern the use of the money that actually call for the money to be returned when the year comes to an end? I thank you.
*THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO): I want to thank Hon. Sen. Mumvuri for the question that he raised for me to enlighten in short on the funds that are availed by ZINARA. It is true that Zimbabwe avails money to road authorities, four of them which are the urban areas, DDF for rural set ups as well as rural district councils and the department of roads that addresses the local road network. These four branches are given a budget like what Minister Chinamasa does. What we do at the beginning of the year is to ensure that a particular rural district council gets so much. For example and which is a reality, all rural district councils which are 60 in the nation, each council will be availed $500 000 and above.
So, when I went on tours to those areas I informed them that if they utilised these funds in the councils that they reside in and use the money properly, they would be able to finish all the roads. We are aware of what will be taking place. We will have made adequate calculations. The challenge with rural district councils is that when they are availed funds, they do not know what to do or they know what to do but it seems like there are some obstacles or disagreements that happen. They are supposed to resurface the roads. The road engineer as well as the person who will have done the job signs for these so that we are satisfied that the road has been well done. Once they do that, they send the documentation to ZINARA and ZINARA pays the funds.
The challenge that we have experienced with some councils is that they have engineers that are not qualified so nothing is taking place or where there are CEOs that do not know how to do their job. Some councils when they get the money, they virement the funds and pay salaries, and challenges are faced because they cannot come to us because there is no certificate that shows that the roads have been worked on. There is what is called an acquittal which means that they should acquit money that they have used after disbursements.
We told them that if they do not have engineers, they should use our provincial road engineers or those from DDF, because at the end of the day, all roads are the mandate of the Department of Transport. So at the end of the day what we want is for those branches to utilise money as stipulated. Thank you.
Questions Without Notice were interrupted by THE HON.
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE in terms of Standing Order No. 62.
ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS WITH NOTICE
2016 BUDGET SUCCESSES AND FAILURES
- HON. SEN. CHIMBUDZI asked the Minister of Finance and
Economic Development to inform the House;
- The success and failures of the 2016 budget;
- How through the 2016 Budget the Ministry has managed to economically empower people with disabilities.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): The expenditure policy
thrust embraced by the National Budget for 2016 sought to the share of resources that support ZIM ASSET development programmes and improve delivery of services through the reduction of commitments from the Public Service Commission wage bill. Budget expenditures for 2016 amounted to $4, 909 billion against planned expenditures of $4 billion.
Madam President, with respect to the performance of the 2016
Budget, Hon. Members will recall that my Ministry presented the Annual Budget Review Statement on Thursday, 20th July, 2017 which sought to update Members and the general public on the performance of the 2016 Budget. The statement highlighted the major achievements during 2016 as well as the challenges that we faced. Allow me Madam President therefore to summarise the major achievements which were attained in the implementation of the 2016 Budget.
In agriculture, in collaboration with the private sector Government mobilised resources of over $1 billion in support of the 2016/2017 summer cropping season which, together with the good rains ensured strong recovery of agriculture which registered 21,6% growth. Maize production was above the $2 million metric tonnes with 1, 127 metric tonnes having been delivered to GMB as at that time ensuring that the nation has adequate food security.
In the area of mining, despite low international prices the mining sector realised output gains across most minerals with overall growth of 8,2% with exception of coal and diamonds.
In the area of manufacturing, Government through interventions through Statutory 64 of 2016, coupled with the exporting incentive scheme by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, all in support of Domestic Value Addition, contributed towards the revival of the manufacturing sector and resulted in capacity utilisation improving from 34.3% in 2015 to 47.4% in 2016.
Mr. President Sir, despite the limited 2016 budget capacity towards funding of infrastructure projects, Government was able to channel a total of US$403,9m towards infrastructure development projects resulting in the completion of some of our major projects. The TokweMukorsi Dam, the largest inland dam was completed in December 2016 and was commissioned by the former President on 18th May 2017. This has potential to transform the social and economic landscape of Masvingo Province, given the vast irrigation as well as tourism potential.
Furthermore, 2016 saw the commissioning of the Victoria Falls Airport on 18 November, 2016 following extensive upgrading resulting in improved destination connectivity and hence giving impetus and scope for more flights to the resort town. The Rural Electrification Programme continues to make strides in extending coverage in rural areas thereby promoting empowerment of rural communities. During 2016, US$18.2m was disbursed from the Rural Electrification Fund, allowing 413 public institutions and household projects to be completed.
Mr. President, Sir, in terms of the provisions of the Disabled Persons Act of 1992, the welfare and rehabilitation of disabled persons is catered for through various programmes which are funded by Treasury. In this regard, the 2016 budget had a provision of US$16.2m which targeted supporting the vulnerable groups, including the disabled persons. The programmes included Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM), Drought Mitigation, Health Assistance and Support to Government Institutions. On BEAM Mr. President Sir, the 2016 BEAM programme, under this programme a total expenditure of US$1.5m was incurred in support of examination fees for 18 021 children which included the disabled who set for both ordinary and advanced examinations throughout the country.
In 2017, US$8m so far has been disbursed out of a budget provision of US$10m. On drought mitigation US$3,8m was spent under the food deficit mitigation strategy by Government for grain transportation from Grain Marketing Board depots to the distribution centre. Grain distribution was extended to 852 000 households which were affected by Elnino in 2015-2016 season. Invariably, this benefited such interest groups as the elderly and disabled in giving access to grain collection.
On health assistance and support to the disabled persons,. in 2016, an amount of US$100 000 was incurred for the health assistance programme which targets to support medical expenses for economically disadvantaged members of our society. However, Mr. President Sir, the Hon. Senators will be delighted to note that disabled persons in our society are benefiting from the 2017 budget on which Treasury has so far disbursed US$700 000. We have faced some challenges in budget implementation during 2016.
Mr. President Sir, despite efforts to grow the share of resources that support ZIM ASSET development programmes and service delivery, wage expenditures have been accounting for overall 91.7% of overall budget expenditures and revenues respectively in 2016. The limited fiscal space, coupled with liquidity and foreign currency shortages have affected budget performance as most projects and programmes could not receive resources in accordance with cashflow plans and programme of works. Resultantly, there has been marked increase in domestic debt characterized by financing through Treasury Bills and recourse to Central Bank overdraft funding. There have been attendant challenges such as cash and related adversely affected economic performance.
Cabinet has since directed Government ministries and departments to immediately adopt expenditure cost cutting measures and improved revenue generation. We should assist in restoring fiscal deficit to sustainable levels. I thank you Mr. President.
BENEFITS REALISED FROM THE CHINESE RESIDENT IN THE COUNTRY
- HON. SEN. CHIMBUDZI asked the Minister of Finance and Economic Development to inform the House what benefits the nation has realised from the Chinese people who are in business in the country?
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. President Sir, I am not sure that this question comes under the purview of my Ministry, especially so where it is not specific which business Chinese people are in. What I know is that our engagement with the People’s Republic of China has been through loan financing of our infrastructure projects such as the Kariba South Extension which as the Hon. Senate will know, the first phase was completed in December last year - now contributing 150 megawatts to the national grid. The second phase will be completed by end of March this year, and will contribute a further 150 megawatts to the national grid.
I am also aware of various loan facilities which have been extended in Harare for instance, to upgrade the Morton Jaffray water works, it is again loan financing and they are various loan facilities which we are enjoying through the generosity of the People’s Republic of China, in particular the China Exim Bank. Unless specific businesses are outlined, I will not be in a position to give an answer that will turn out to be too generalised. I thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
Questions With Notice were interrupted by THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE in terms of Standing Order No. 62.
MOTION
BUSINES OF THE HOUSE
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Mr. President Sir, I move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 1 to 9 on the Order Paper be stood over until Order of the Day, Number 10 has been disposed of.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
APPOINTMENT OF AUDITOR GENERAL
THE MINSTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. President, I rise to move the motion standing in my name;
THAT WHEREAS, Section 310 (1) of the Constitution of
Zimbabwe provides that an Auditor General is appointed by the
President with the approval of Parliament;
AND WHEREAS Section 340 (1) (a) of the Constitution provides the President with the power to reappoint a Public Office holder into such office;
NOW, THEREFORE, in terms of the aforementioned Section 310
(1) of the Constitution, this House resolves and approves that Mrs.
Mildred Chiri be appointed Auditor-General of the Republic of Zimbabwe for a further term in office effective from 25th February, 2017.
Mr. President Sir, the Hon. Members of this august House are already familiar with the good work Mrs. Chiri has carried out to date and throughout her incumbency, but it is for the sake of completeness that I shall proceed to highlight a few of her qualifications and achievements that support her reappointment into office.
Mrs. Chiri obtained a Bachelor of Accountancy Degree from the
University of Zimbabwe in 1983 and thereafter, undertook a course on
Public Finance and Accounting from the Zimbabwe Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy also from the University of Zimbabwe and this she did in 1985. She then qualified as articled clerk after enrolling with the Institute of Chartered Accountants where she completed serving her articles over the period 1999 to 2002. In 2015, she obtained her Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) and became a certified Public Accountant in Zimbabwe. She is currently pursuing her Masters in Business Administration Degree with the National University of Science and Technology (NUST).
In 2014, Mrs. Chiri was appointed Comptroller and AuditorGeneral as it was known then, whereupon through her leadership that office was able to bring up to date the audits of annual financial statements of Government which were in arrears by as much as five years at that time - a considerable achievement in its own right. Mr. President Sir, to this very day, the Auditor-General’s Office remains up to date with its annual audit reports of central Government, financial institutions and parastatals. Hon. Senators will recall that the reports for the December 2016 financial year end were tabled in Parliament on June 21, 2017 beating the deadline of June 30th.
Mrs. Chiri has been pivotal in the development of the Audit Office Act Chapter 22:18 which was passed in Parliament in 2011 which saw that department restructure and this led to improved operational efficiencies. Recently, she has developed a three year strategic plan for the office spanning from 2016 to 2018 which aims at strengthening the office in particular areas which are:-
- Enhancement of the independence of the institution through appropriate modifications of the legal framework.
- Organisational structure and institutional governance.
- Development of human resources, audit standards and methodology.
- Communication strategies and stakeholder management.
Mr. President Sir, the areas I have just referred to are domains or indicators set by the African Organisation of Supreme Audit Institution, an association of English speaking Auditor General’s offices, also known as Supreme Audit Institutions, against which all 23 countries in that sub-group are measured against.
Additionally, Mr. President Sir, Mrs. Chiri has spearheaded the professionalisation of the Audit office by engaging consultants to conduct training of articled clerks since 2010 and there are now three fully qualified Chartered Accountants in that department.
Furthermore Mr. President Sir, under her leadership, 45 members of staff have registered with the association of Chartered Certified Accountants or ACCA and the office is assisting with tuition fees for their studies. Several of them are now fully qualified of that institution.
The Audit office is also sponsoring its staff to study at the Certified
Institute of Public Accountants. As well as being the immediate Vice President of the African Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions sub regional grouping, Mrs. Chiri is the past Chair of the Southern African Development Community SADC Board of Auditors comprising Zimbabwe, Botswana and Malawi. Her office headed the audit function for three years, whereupon she handed over to the succeeding board of Auditors in Ferbruary 2010. Mrs. Chiri is a board member representing developing countries of International Organisation of Supreme Audit
Institutions Development Initiative, a training arm of all AuditorGeneral’s offices based in Oslow, Norway.
In conclusion, Mr. President Sir, it is clear that Mrs. Chiri has been a pivotal figure in the public sector of Zimbabwe and an effective Auditor-General to date. To this end, I am therefore moving that this august House approves her reappointment as Auditor General for a further term of six years effective from 25 February, 2017. I so submit, Mr. President Sir.
HON. SEN. B. SIBANDA: Mr. President, I have got four points to make. The first point – I want to congratulate the Minister on both his presentation and his decision to recommend her for the reappointment. I say to the Minister – congratulations. I say to the Auditor-General - congratulations.
The second point I want to raise is not as nice as the first point. I want to ask the Minister why the Executive ever contemplated appointing somebody in her place when she is doing such a sterling job which everyone sees. Third point - I want to challenge us not to demotivate her and her office as an institution by actioning her recommendations. By institution, I am talking about Government and Parliament, actioning her recommendations and observations. My last point is that, I would prefer a situation in future where both the National Assembly and the Senate took her reports seriously, tabled them, debated them and followed up with questions on the Executive as to the level of implementation of those recommendations. Thank you Mr.
President.
HON. SEN. CHIEF NGUNGUBANE: Thank you Mr. President.
I rise to support the motion brought by the Minister of Finance and
Economic Development. I am in total agreement that the Auditor General should be reappointed. Firstly, she has the right credentials, academic qualifications and she also has the right experience. I would want to challenge the Executive Mr. President. Her work will never be complete if the recommendations from her office are taken seriously and applied. With those few words, I rise to support her appointment.
HON. SEN. MUMVURI: Thank you Mr. President. I also rise on a similar note to congratulate the Minister of Finance for bringing this motion in this august House. I will not want to say it was long overdue but we were all wondering what was happening when it was mooted that a certain Mr. Ndudzo was coming to replace Mrs. Chiri. We were all disappointed. This good news of you Hon. Minister coming back, having changed your mind and came up with a name in the Lower House; we were also not pleased about that one. We want to honour your action of rescinding the appointment of Mr. Ndudzo.
Mr. President, I stand up to support her reappointment, not that she is a woman but that Mildred Chiri deserves the reappointment purely based on her competence and qualifications as outlined. – [HON. SENATORS: Hear, hear.]- Her reports to this Parliament over the years have been comprehensive and very informative with clear recommendations to the Executive to implement what she wanted done in certain sector Ministries pointed here and there over employment and so forth to complement the work of the Executive.
The person we are talking about here takes a professional approach to her work and that is second to none. That is why we were wondering why replacing her at this time. I could see no reason why she was being replaced. My question is - the Minister informed us whether formally or informally that he approached Mrs. Chiri to continue but at one time she refused. What made her to change her mind now and then take up the post of being the Auditor General at this point in time? The nation might want to know the circumstances which had led to that situation. Thank you very much and I want to support this fully that she be the Auditor General.
*HON. SEN. BUKA: Thank you Mr. President. I stood up to support the reappointment of the Auditor General to do her job. She is developing herself educationally so that she performs her duties efficiently. In terms of her education and qualifications, she has excellent academic credentials. For her, the sky is the limit as she continues to academically empower herself. As a result of this, she is an asset that we need as she is professional and knowledgeable on delivering her mandate.
Secondly, I support her reappointment because we have been informed of her sterling job that when she first assumed office, there was a backlog of five years work. In a short space of time, she worked hard and made sure that everything was up to date in terms of reports. This is only possible from individuals who are willing to go an extra mile, a person who is hard working and excellent at her job and not a casual employee who is not result oriented.
Such individuals like her are what we need in the current Zimbabwe, under the new dispensation in order to achieve results and develop the nation. The AG is not only after professionally and academically empowering herself but also ensures that there is staff development of her officers which will ensure effectiveness and efficiency in the AG’s office. She has done a lot of programmes for her subordinates to also rise through the ranks. She has strong leadership qualities as evidenced by the way she leads and we need to value her because she is an asset. We must protect her for Zimbabwe to develop.
I also heard that she holds a position at regional level under SADC and also internationally. This shows that she is not only lifting the Zimbabwe flag high but the region and the world as a whole. Under this current dispensation which is aimed at economic recovery, if we do not value her and allow her to work, we are not doing justice.
In my opinion, she is a woman who has done very well and should be encouraged and protected. If she had at one time resigned, may be because she had been threatened as a result of exposing certain departments or individuals, we want you to look into the issue of how she can be protected to ensure that she executes her mandate in honesty as is expected of her without fear and intimidation. I want to thank the Minister and my request is that you protect this woman. As women, we feel proud that we have one of our own who has raised the flag of women in terms of working hard and being efficient and effective. I thank you.
HON. SEN. MUSAKA: Thank you Mr. President. I also wish to
join colleagues in thanking the Minister for bringing this Bill. I also want to express approval for the reappointment. There is a general disappointment that is going on at ZIMRA. It took me four months to produce a tax clearance certificate and I am quite disappointed that she has all these qualifications but the performance there does not deserve all these qualifications. May be, it is not her – [HON. SENATORS: Inaudible interjections.]- Protect me Mr. President. This is the point of this House, let me say it. May be it is not her fault. It is either the instruments are not there but quite frankly, I was not impressed given the fact that she has such impressive qualifications – four months to produce a tax clearance certificate.
THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: The
Minister will answer but that is not her department. Her department is auditing not certificates of taxes. You can continue.
HON. SEN. MUSAKA: Alright, can I conclude Mr. President.
Can I conclude Mr. President?
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. President, I think
Hon. Members have made contributions all in support of her reappointment. I think that Hon. Sen. Sibanda as well as other Hon. Senators who contributed are making reference to problems that we encountered when we were seeking her reappointment. They were not of the Minister of Finance’s making or Government or the Executive. What I need to point out is that Mrs. Chiri served in this position for 12 years, from 2004 to 2016. I sought then the former President to extend her term for another one year while she was thinking and considering whether she would want to continue because we did not have suitable candidates for this position. So, I begged her to remain.
Mr. President, about this time last year, I called her to my office and asked her to take up the position because although she had served 12 years, the new Constitution now limits it to two terms but did not apply to her for the twelve years because that was before the Constitution came into effect. So, I asked her to take up the post for another term of six years. I spent three hours with her trying to persuade her to take that position. She said, yes, then she left and sent me a text message to say she has reconsidered the matter, she is not taking up the offer. She followed it up by a letter to say she is not taking that position. It is only then that I then went out to look for other candidates. It was never at anytime the intention of the Executive not to reappoint her. We are very happy with her performance and in fact through her reports, it has helped us to improve our own internal systems, not just within the central Government but also in parastatals.
Madam President, it helped us to set up a very strong Accountant General’s Department now; recruit someone professionally from one of the accounting firms to head that Department. We have now set up under the Accountant General’s Department, three units. One of the units is dedicated to reading her reports, following up and making sure that any malpractice she has pointed out is rectified and corrected and systems are put in place.
Another unit is dedicated to reading all financial statements of parastatals, local authorities in order to determine their performance and also to see whether or not they are coming up to international best practice. We are in the process of setting up internal audit departments in line Ministries who would report to the Internal Auditor in the Ministry of Finance, all this coming from the reports that she has been submitting.
We treasure these comments because it helps us to understand the shortcomings of our systems. It also gives us opportunity to put in systems so that in future, her reports will be less and less critical of the way we run our finances. So, I want to put to rest any notion that we were opposed to her reappointment. It was basically her own decision, and in fact when she later changed, I believe that when the matter came up, and I explained the situation as I am doing, women Parliamentarians went to talk to her basically to say she was letting the cause of women down. It was through that persuasion that she changed her mind. But I insisted this time that she should again put it in writing and she did. So, it is on that basis that I am submitting her name for reappointment and I so move.
Clearly, she qualifies, there is no doubt. She has done commendable work. She has got the experience and also she has the integrity to be able to do this work. We are not appointing her because she is a woman. Like I said, there was some delay because it is very difficult to find suitable persons in this position. So, it took us another year, basically to scout around and I was quite hopeful that she would accept but at that time of course, she did not accept. So, there was no question about rescinding her appointment in favour of Ndudzo. That was the case.
Hon. Sen. Musaka, you are completely out of order. The subject matter for discussion is Auditor-General’s Office and not ZIMRA but I want to invite you because I can feel the desperation within you about the way you have been treated by ZIMRA. If you could make a written complain to me I can take it up with ZIMRA so that whatever problem you have can be sorted out. I thank you Mr. President.
I so move that this House approves her reappointment for six years effective from 25th February, 2017.
Motion THAT WHEREAS, Section 310 (1) of the Constitution of
Zimbabwe provides that an Auditor-General is appointed by the
President with the approval of Parliament;
AND WHEREAS, Section 340 (1) (a) of the Constitution provides the President with the power to reappoint a Public Office holder into such office;
NOW THEREFORE, in terms of the aforementioned Section 310
(1) of the Constitution, this House resolves and approves that Mrs.
Mildred Chiri be appointed Auditor–General of the Republic of
Zimbabwe for a further term in office effective from the 25th of
February 2017 – [HON. SENATORS: Hear, hear.] - put and adopted.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): I move that
Orders of the Day, Numbers 11 to 13 on today’s Order Paper, be stood over until Order of the Day, Number 14 has been disposed of.
SECOND READING
ESTATES ADMINISTRATORS AMENDMENT BILL [H. B. 8A,
2016]
Fourteenth Order read: Estate Administrators Amendment Bill [H. B. 8A, 2016].
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Thank you Mr.
President. Mr. President, I bring before this House the Estates Administrators Amendment Bill [H. B. 8A, 2016]. This Bill basically Mr. President is to ensure the ease of doing business in Zimbabwe.
HON. SEN. NCUBE: On a point of order Hon. President. Thank you Hon. President Sir. I do not remember in this House when this Bill was read. I do not know whether I was absent from the House.
THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I understand that it was circulated. Hon. Minister, proceed.
HON. ZIYAMBI: Thank you Mr. President Sir. Like I was saying, Government’s role in relation to the creation of a conducive and viable business environment and the effective, efficient and fair administration of justice is beyond question. The nation’s thrust towards economic growth through the ease of doing business initiative is firmly anchored on an efficient justice delivery system in so far as the resolution of commercial and business matters is concerned.
Government is therefore fully committed towards the creation of a sound and robust legal framework which is essential for the establishment of a conducive and productive business environment. There is therefore no doubt that if our legislative framework equips the courts to handle business cases expeditiously, the country’s economic recovery and growth agenda will become achievable. In the whole, our economic goals as enunciated in the economic blue print ZIM ASSET, will be realised.
Mr. President Sir, there is a consensus that the resolution of insolvency cases is one of the key factors crucial to effective and efficient running of business enterprises. Be that as it may, the current legislation governing the resolution of insolvency cases is fragmented and scattered in several pieces of legislation. There is, also, duplication of duties between the Council of Estate Administrators and the Master of the High Court, thereby prolonging the process of resolving insolvency matters.
These short comings which adversely affect the ease of doing business in the country, therefore necessitated the crafting of the Estates
Administrators Amendment Bill of 2016, which seeks to amend the Estate Administrators Amendment Bill of 2016, which seeks to amend the Estate Administrators Act [Chapter 7:20].
Mr. President Sir, this now brings me to the contents of the Bill before Hon. Members.
Clauses 5 and 7 seek to amend the principal Act by broadening the scope of the application of the Act to include an Insolvency
Practitioner in relation to the register kept by the Council of Estate Administrators and prohibition of practicing without a practicing certificate respectively.
In addition to the register of Estate Administrators, the Council shall establish and maintain a register of Insolvency Practitioners. This is in keeping with the broad amendments to the Act which seek to include insolvency practitioners under its ambit. Similarly, as is the case with the Estate Administrators, Insolvency Practitioners will be prohibited from performing insolvency work except with a valid practicing certificate.
Madam President, Clause 6 seeks to insert a new part to the
Principal Act, to provide for the registration and de-registration of Insolvency Practitioners. The new part also seeks to provide new qualifications for Insolvency Practitioners. In terms of the new provisions, the Council shall establish and maintain a register to be known as the Register of Insolvency Practitioners. This register shall contain the details of registered Insolvency Practitioners in the country. This will enhance transparency, accountability and efficiency since all registered insolvency practitioners in the country will appear in the register.
Mr. President Sir, in order to enhance efficiency and accountability, the Register of Insolvency shall be open to the public. Any interested person can inspect the regtister and if they so desire, make copies thereof. Further, the Secretary of the Council shall provide the Master of the High Court with a copy of the Register of insolvency practitioners every year. This will improve the administration of justice and effective functioning of the courts, given the role of the courts in insolvency matters.
Mr. President Sir, the new provisions seek to ensure that the insolvency practitioners are people of a high professional standard. Such professionals as registered legal practitioners, registered accountants and auditors and members of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators in Zimbabwe are specified as eligible for provisional registration as insolvency practitioners. These requirements for final registration as set out in the new provisions will ensure the professionalism of insolvency practitioners, resulting in greater efficiency in the resolution of insolvency cases.
Mr. President Sir, Clause 8 seeks to insert a new section to the Principal Act to provide for the renewal procedures for the practicing certificate of the insolvency practitioner. This clause also provides for the grounds upon which the application of the practicing certificate maybe rejected. Like any other professional practicing certificate, the practicing certificate of an insolvency practitioner will be renewed annually, upon satisfaction of the specified requisite criteria. If the specified criteria are not met, the secretary of the Council of Estate
Administrators and insolvency practitioners will reject the application.
Mr. President Sir, the provisions on the renewal of the practicing certificate of the insolvency practitioner will help to ensure that only competent persons are granted practicing certificates and, as such, remain in the Register of Insolvency Practitioners. The annual renewal of the practicing certificate of the Insolvency Practitioners will provide checks and balances to the functions of the Insolvency Practitioners insofar as insolvency matters are concerned. That only Insolvency Practitioners who meet the prescribed requirements will have their practicing certificates renewed will ultimately improve the administration of justice through the professional and competent handling of insolvency matters.
Mr. President Sir, Clause 9 seeks to insert a new section to the principal Act that will provide for the application of provisions on the disciplinary powers of the Council to Insolvency Practitioners. The grounds specified in the principal Act as constituting misconduct and thus requiring disciplinary action by the council will also be extended to encapsulate insolvency practitioners. These provisions will ensure that insolvency practitioners observe the highest standards of professional ethics in the conduct of their duties. This, in turn, will guarantee the professional and competent handling of insolvency matters. This will ultimately not only improve the effective administration of justice in the country, but, also contribute to the ease of doing business campaign.
Mr. President Sir, Clause 11 will add a new section to the principal
Act to provide that if any court in Zimbabwe removes a registered
Insolvency Practitioner from the register, such court should inform the Council. This will enhance the harmonisation of the functions of the court and the Council. This will help to ensure that the register of Insolvency Practitioners kept by the Council will remain up to date and only contains persons who are qualified to be such.
Clause 12 will insert a new schedule to the principal Act. The schedule will provide for the code of ethics of an Insolvency Practitioner to enhance the professional and competent performance of his or her duties. The schedule will provide for such professional ethics as integrity, objectivity, confidentiality, professional behaviour, professional competence and due care. Hon. Members will agree with me that these are important principles which should be observed by every professional. The Insolvency Practitioner, being a person occupying a position of such a high professional matter, is, of necessity, required to observe these professional ethics. There is no iota of doubt that the observance of this code of professional ethics will create highly competent and professional Insolvency Practitioners who will perform their functions in insolvency cases above board.
Madam President, Hon. Members will note that this amendment Bill has dealt extensively with the challenges inherent in the resolution of insolvency cases in the country. The amendment Bill will harmonise the fragmented legislation dealing with insolvency cases and thus, ensure that these cases are resolved expeditiously. If enacted, the amendment Bill will make the Council of Estate Administrators and Insolvency Practitioners the sole oversight agency for Estate Administrators and Insolvency Practitioners.
Further, the code of ethics provided for in the amendment Bill will ensure that Estate Administrators and Insolvency Practitioners observe professional standards which will improve the handling of insolvency cases. There is, therefore, no doubt that the Estate Administrators [Amendment] Bill, 2016, once enacted into law, will go a long way in enhancing the speedy resolution of insolvency cases, thereby improving the ease of doing business in Zimbabwe.
I therefore commend the Estate Administrators [Amendment] Bill, 2016, to the House and move that the Bill be now read a second time.
Motion put and agreed to.
Bill read a second time.
Committee Stage: With leave, forthwith.
COMMITTEE STAGE
ESTATES ADMINISTRATORS AMENDMENT BILL [H. B. 8A, 2016] House in Committee.
Clauses 1 to 12 put and agreed to.
House resumed.
Bill reported without amendments.
Third Reading: With leave, forthwith.
THIRD READING
ESTATES ADMINISTRATORS AMENDMENT BILL [H. B. 8A,
2016]
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Mr. President, I now move that the Bill be now read the third time.
Motion put and agreed to.
Bill read the third time.
On the motion of THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI), the Senate adjourned at Five o’ clock p.m. until Tuesday, 6th March, 2018.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Thursday, 15th February, 2018
The National Assembly met at a Quarter-past Two o’clock p. m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. SPEAKER in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENTS BY THE HON. SPEAKER
DEATH OF MR. MORGAN RICHARD TSVANGIRAI
THE HON. SPEAKER: It is with deep sense of pain and sorrow that I have to inform this august House of the untimely death of Mr.
Morgan Richard Tsvangirai, President of the Movement for Democratic
Change (MDC) Party. Mr. Tsvangirai passed on yesterday in South
Africa after a spirited fight against colon cancer. Mr. Tsvangirai served Zimbabwe with distinction as an accomplished trade unionist and leader of the opposition for many years as well as being Prime Minister of the Republic of Zimbabwe and Leader of Government business in
Parliament between 2009 and 2013. He contributed immensely to Parliament as a member of the Committee on Standing Rules and Orders during the same period in pursuit of parliamentary democracy.
Parliament offers its unreserved condolences to the family, friends and people of Zimbabwe during this dark moment in our political history. In this regard therefore, I invite Hon. Members to rise and observe a minute of silence in honour of the late Mr. Tsvangirai.
Hon. Members observed a minute of silence.
THE HON. SPEAKER: May his soul rest in eternal peace. –
[HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] –
ERROR ON THE ORDER PAPER
THE HON. SPEAKER: I wish to draw the attention of the House to an error on today’s Order Paper where the printer omitted Order of the Day, Number 2 relating to the Second Reading of the Electoral
Amendment Bill [H. B. 6, 2017]. Order’ of the Day, Number 2 on the Second Reading of the Mines and Minerals Bill [H. B. 9, 2015] should therefore be renumbered as Order Number 3.
VISITORS IN THE SPEAKER’S GALLERY
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have to acknowledge the presence in the Speaker’s Gallery, of students and teachers from Seke 4 High School in Harare. You are most welcome – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] -
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Thank you Hon.
Speaker Sir. I move that Order of the Day, Number 1 be stood over until Order of the Day, Number 2 has been disposed of.
Motion put and agreed to.
SECOND READING
ELECTORAL AMENDMENT BILL [H. B. 6, 2017] Second Order read: Second Reading: Electoral Amendment Bill [H. B. 6, 2017].
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Thank you Hon.
Speaker. I am honoured to present the Electoral Amendment Bill, 2017 and this Bill principally seeks to ensure the smooth progression of the new registration of voters, proclaimed by the President by Statutory Instrument 109:2017.
The amendments in this Bill are in compliance Section with 157 (1) (b) of the Constitution, which specifies that the legislature must provide for the registration of voters and requirements for registration on particular voters’ roll. I am also confident to mention that Zimbabwe Electoral Commission has been consulted and their recommendations have been incorporated in this amendment. This requirement is adhered to in terms of Section 157 (4) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe.
HON. MARIDADI: On a point of order. I am going through the
Order Paper here and it appears that the Minister is presenting the Electoral Amendment Bill but I do not see it here.
THE HON. SPEAKER: We corrected that before you came; there was a misprint.
HON.MARIDADI: There was a misprint? – I was here when you did the correction. I thought it was that the Insolvency Bill will be Order Number Two and Number Three will be Mines and Minerals amendment; that is what I have on the Order Paper. The Electoral Amendment Bill does not appear.
THE HON. SPEAKER: It has been omitted, the Electoral Amendment Bill should come as Number Two.
HON. MARIDADI: So, for the benefit of my other colleagues here; what it means is that the Electoral Amendment Bill does not even appear on this Order Paper, it is now appearing; it has been inserted.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Yes.
HON. MARIDADI: So, it is not a correction, it is an insertion because a correction entails that maybe there was a misprint but it is a complete insertion, let it be put on record that it was not there and it has been inserted, if my English grammar serves me correctly.
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Thank you Hon.
Speaker Sir. May be if I may start afresh. Like I said, I am honoured to present to you the Electoral Amendment Bill, 2017 and this Bill principally seeks to ensure the smooth progression of the new registration of voters, proclaimed by the President by Statutory Instrument 109:2017.
The amendments contained in the Bill are in compliance with Section 157 (1) (b) of the Constitution, which specifies that the legislature must provide for the registration of voters and requirements for registration on particular voters’ roll. I am also confident to mention that the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission has been consulted and their recommendations have been incorporated in this amendment. This requirement is adhered to in terms of Section 157 (4) of the Constitution. The Bill introduces provisions that cater for the envisaged new voter registration system, otherwise referred to as the Biometric Voter Registration System.
The amendments also seek to bring the relevant provisions of the Act in line with the letter and spirit of the electoral principles enunciated in the Constitution of Zimbabwe. The Biometric Voter Registration is a new phenomenon, which will be used in the next harmonised elections slated for this year. This technology will offer better accessibility for citizens, help avoid long queues and waiting times for registration when voting, add simplicity and speed to the election cycle as the voter identification documents will make it easier for polling staff to verify voter details, making voters and commissions feel confident about the quality of their registry which will be more accurate, reliable and have complete data - [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.]-
THE HON SPEAKER: Order, order! Hon. Members, this Bill
speaks directly to the electoral process where the majority of you will be involved. So, you need to pay attention so that you can advise your constituencies and the public in general accordingly.
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): I was saying that the Biometric Voter Registration will also reduce identity theft, misuse of records of the deceased and ballot box staffing. We are not the first country Mr. Speaker to make use of this system. Other countries have already utilised and used this system and highly recommend the convenience that it gives.
Mr. Speaker Sir, allow me to discuss what the proposed amendments of the Bill entails to change.
Clause 1
This Clause merely state the Bill’s short title – Electoral Amendment
Act, 2017
Clause 2 Completion of claim forms
This clause seeks to repeal and substitute subsection 1 of Section 24 of the Act by removing the peremptory provision placed on the voter registration officer to feel a claimant’s form on behalf of an eligible voter seeking to be registered on the voters’ roll. The current State of the Act requires a voter registration officer to complete the prescribed form on behalf of any person wishing to be registered as a voter. This process has proven to be slow and tedious. This amendment is intended to provide for an efficient, expedited and simpler process for voter registration. The new provision is consistent with Section 155 (2) (b) of the Constitution that places an obligation on the State to take appropriate legislative measures to ensure that all eligible voters are registered as voters and it is also in the spirit of the SADC Principles and Guidelines governing democratic elections.
Clause 3
This clause is similar to clause 2 wherein Section 25 is amended by having Section 25 (1) repealed. This section puts the onus on the voter registration officer to fill in forms for transfer from a constituency to another, the section is therefore repealed and paves way to allow a citizen who wishes to transfer to another constituency to complete the prescribed forms on their own, thereby making the process much faster and less straining on the voter registration officer. This clause also replaces the duties which used to be carried out by the Registrar General of Voters and the roles now lie with the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission.
Clause 4
Clause 4 (1) of the Bill deletes subsections (3), (4), and (5) of Section 36A of the Electoral Act. The section under which ZEC is reregistering existing voters. This Amendment Bill creates a new obligation of voters to be registered under the new Biometric Voter Registration (BVR), because previously registered voters were excused from certain aspects of the full registration procedure. This new obligation will preclude some people who may refuse to submit to biometric registration, thereby compromising the integrity of the new voters roll. With the new provision, everyone re-registering as well as persons registering for the first time, will have to complete the claim form, produce proof of identity, citizenship and place of residence and have their biometric features – fingerprints, photographs taken. The operationalisation of this section is deemed to have taken effect on the 14th of September 2017.
Clause 5 – Voter registration certificate not to be used for voting on polling day
This clause seeks to delete a provision in Section 56 (1) (b) of the Electoral Act which previously allowed voters whose names, for what reason, did not appear on a polling station voters roll to vote merely on production of his or her voter’s registration certificate or voter’s slip. The effect of this clause is that, although persons registering as voters will still be given voters’ registration certificates on the actual polling day, a voter’s registration certificate will not entitle its holder to vote if his or her name does not appear on the voters roll.
The rationale for this change is that in the past, voter registration certificates have been alleged to have been misused or abused by disentitled voters. The repeal of this provision will add credibility to the electoral process thereby promoting free and fair elections as enshrined in Section 155 of the Constitution.
Clause 6 and schedule – minor amendments
This clause contains minor and consequential amendments to the
Electoral Act and minor omissions from the provisions of the Electoral
Amendment Act [Act 6/2014] and the General Laws Amendment Act [Act 3/2016]. The effect is to remove the last remaining references to the abolished posts of ‘Registrar-General of Voters’ and ‘Constituency Register’.
In conclusion, the proposed amendments to the Electoral
Amendment Bill are fundamental in ensuring that Zimbabwe Electoral Commission undertakes its mandate and execute its duties as envisaged in Section 155 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe. I thank you.
HON. CHASI: I rise to present the report on the Portfolio Committee on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs on the Electoral Amendment Bill [H.B. 6, 2017].
1.0. INTRODUCTION
1.1. The Electoral Amendment Bill (H. B. 6, 2017) was gazetted on September 18, 2017 and as part of its mandate, the Portfolio
Committee on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs considered the Bill. In terms of Section 141(b) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, the Committee held public hearings and called for submissions from members of the public.
The Bill seeks to introduce amendments that specifically deal with the voter registration process and the proposed amendments largely cater for the introduction of the Biometric Voters Registration (BVR) system. The amendments also seek to bring the relevant provisions of the Act in line with the letter and spirit of the electoral principles enunciated in the Constitution of Zimbabwe.
2.0. METHODOLOGY
2.1. The Committee deliberated on the Bill during one of its
Committee meetings and then went on to hold public hearings from the
1st to the 7th of December2017 in Masvingo, Marondera, Mt Darwin,
Mutare, Chinhoyi, Gweru, Bulawayo, Gwanda, Lupane, Hwange and
Harare. For expediency and for the purposes of containing costs, the Committee conducted hearings for the Electoral Amendment Bill together with hearings on the Insolvency Bill [H.B. 11 of 2016]. The Committee is grateful to Parliament’s Development Partners, UNDP and SAPST, for facilitating the holding of public hearings.
The Committee also received written submissions on the Bill from various stakeholders.
3.0 SUBMISSIONS FROM MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC 3.1 General Comments
Members of the public called on Parliament to ensure that people receive the Bills well before public hearings are held in order for the public to make informed contributions. They also called on Parliament to give feedback on their input on previous Bills. In addition, Zimbabweans called on Parliament to improve the publicity of the hearings. Many participants were of the view that those who attended the public hearings were not properly representative of the various communities in Zimbabwe and that Parliament should make an effort to cater for all communities during public hearings. As an example, participants in Mt Darwin, Gweru, Hwange and Bulawayo, it was pointed out that Parliament should also reach out to remote places in rural areas and high density areas in urban areas. Participants further called for Bills to be published in all the officially recognised local languages.
Participants called for comprehensive and all-inclusive electoral reforms which will enable the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) to carry out its mandate without interference from the Executive. It was also suggested that the “piecemeal fashion” used to amend the Electoral Act so far is more costly than a “complete overhaul” of the whole Act. They pointed out that Parliament had carried out a number of public hearings on various Electoral Amendment Bills in the past four years but most of their concerns have not yet been addressed.
There was a unanimous call for the electoral law to be fully harmonised with the Constitution and in particular to comprehensively integrate the provisions of Chapter 7 on Elections. Participants also called for the law to conform to the SADC Principles and Guidelines on Elections and other international best practices, norms and standards of free and fair elections.
2.1. Voter Registration
2.1.1. There was a general call for voter registration to be simplified and accessible, for example, one should be automatically registered when applying for a national I.D. Participants indicated that youths and women face tremendous problems when registering as voters due to stringent requirements such as proof of residence and affidavits. Some suggested that the requirement should just be a national I.D., while others opined that the requirement for proof of residence should be scrapped.
Some members of the public in Gwanda were of the opinion that the requirement of proof of residence prohibits people living on the streets and artisanal miners who live in the bush from voting thereby denying them their constitutional right to vote.
Participants in Mt Darwin, Gwanda and Lupane were of the view that aliens should be allowed to register to vote in areas which are known to be dominated by aliens who have lived in Zimbabwe for many years or all their lives.
2.1.2. There were suggestions that there must be “blanket amnesty” for Bulawayo, Matabeleland North and South for identity document requirements because of displacement of people during the Gukurahundi which left many children without birth certificates and identity cards as their parents were buried without burial orders and death certificates. Those without I.Ds have no one to be their witnesses in the attainment of birth certificates and identity cards.
2.1.3. There was general consensus that voter registration should be a continuous process rather than an event conducted before elections.
2.1.4. Participants were of the view that mobile registration of voters as well as issuing of identity documents should cover all wards and be done periodically, not just before elections.
2.1.5. Participants welcomed the removal of use of voter registration slips for voting as they were alleged to have been misused through multiple voting by some individuals in previous elections. However, others expressed the view that since the slips had serial numbers and bar codes, they should be retained for voting.
2.1.6. It was recommended by some that ZEC could devise a voter’s card which can be used to swipe at each successive election.
This card could be valid for life or a number of elections.
2.1.7. Members of the Public in Lupane, Gwanda and Bulawayo expressed concern at the heavy police presence at Biometric Voter Registration centres, because it gave rise to fear for some people who then do not register to vote.
2.1.8. There were suggestions that BVR centres should be set up in hospitals, prisons and embassies to allow every Zimbabwean to register to vote and therefore, be given a chance to exercise their constitutional right to vote.
2.1.9. Some young people suggested that ZEC facilitate online registration of voters to enable those in the diaspora to register to vote.
2.2. Voter Education
2.2.1. Participants called for the Bill to make clear provisions for voter education, civic education and information dissemination as these processes tend to be treated as the same thing by ZEC and law enforcement agents. Some participants submitted that ZEC should allow civil society organisations and interested individuals to complement ZEC efforts on voter education.
2.2.2. There was also general agreement that voter education must cater for the disabled and election material and instructions should be written in local languages as well as in Braille.
2.3. Voter’s Roll
2.3.1. Most participants welcomed the Bill as it provides for a mechanism to clean up the voters roll to remove names of deceased people that still appeared on the voters roll. Participants suggested that the deletion of deceased people on the voters roll should be automatic upon application of a death certificate.
2.4. Zimbabwe Electoral Commission
2.4.1. Participants submitted that ZEC should be fully independent from the Executive as required by Section 235 of the Constitution. To that end, participants submitted that ZEC should be adequately funded by Government.
2.4.2. Participants also called for apolitical Commissioners to be appointed by and accountable to Parliament. The same impartiality should extend to the Commission’s secretariat and all polling officers. To that end, participants submitted that military and security personnel should not be involved in the running of elections. Instead, ZEC should take full responsibility of all electoral processes and decentralise its offices to districts.
2.5. Observers and polling officers
2.5.1. Some Members of the public were of the opinion that the Bill should ensure that ZEC is responsible for the invitation and accreditation of local and international observers as well as clarifying the role of observers. In addition, foreign election observers should also be invited and be required to be neutral.
2.5.2. Participants also requested that the Bill ensures that the selection of polling officers should not be restricted to civil servants, but be extended to unemployed school leavers.
2.6. Media Coverage
2.6.1. The public called for the Bill to guarantee fair and equal media coverage for all contesting parties by State media.
2.7. Special Vote
2.7.1. There were divergent views regarding the special vote. Some called for the special vote to be abolished because it is not transparent and is open to manipulation while others said it was important and necessary. Instead, civil servants recruited as polling officers should be deployed in wards where they are registered so that they can exercise their right to vote. Some suggested that uniformed forces should not be coerced to be loyal to one party and there should be mechanisms to ensure that they are neutral. Other participants said that they should be allowed to exercise their freedom and be able to cast their secret ballot without undue influence.
2.7.2. However, others called for special voting to be maintained and be made transparent so as to cater for those involved in election duties, in prisons, hospitals as well as in old people’s homes. Some participants called for Zimbabwean citizens in the diaspora to be allowed to vote as the Constitution (Section 67) guarantees the right of all Zimbabwean citizens to vote. They suggested that the Bill should create a mechanism to allow those in the diaspora to cast their votes at the respective embassies in the countries where they are resident.
2.7.3. However, some participants argued that those Zimbabweans in the diaspora who want to vote should come and vote from their respective constituencies in Zimbabwe. They were of the view that postal votes should only be reserved for those who have gone out of the country on official Government business.
Assisted Voters
2.7.4. Some participants called for the Bill to require assisted voters to declare at voter registration that they will require assistance on the day of the polls. They proposed that political party activists, the police and presiding officers be disqualified from assisting voters as this may intimidate voters. Instead, assisted voters should be allowed to choose assistants of their choice. And as a way of deterring fraud, participants suggested that the Bill should ensure that those who feign illiteracy are arrested.
2.8. People Living with disabilities
2.8.1. People living with disabilities were of the view that the Bill should allow them to choose their own Senator representing the disabled via their own associations.
2.8.2. Participants also called for specially designed booths for the disabled as well as Braille electoral material for the blind.
2.8.3. It was suggested that voting materials should be provided in Braille as well.
2.9. Gender Equality
2.9.1. The Bill should be clear on issues of gender equality to ensure that the 50% women’s quota threshold in S.1. 7 of the
Constitution is clearly implemented and guaranteed in all elections.
2.10. Polling Stations
2.10.1. Participants suggested that the Bill should require ZEC to consult with communities on where to locate polling centres.
2.10.2. Other participants added that all ballots should be counted at polling stations and there should be no delay in announcing the results.
2.11. Violence and intimidation
2.11.1. Participants expressed concern over the intimidatory practice by some individuals who demanded voter registration slips insinuating that they would use the serial numbers on the slips to track their votes.
2.11.2. Participants called on the Bill to bar traditional leaders from ‘marshalling’ people in their jurisdictions to polling stations and instructing them to vote for particular party candidates. Members of the public also called for the automatic disqualification of candidates involved in violence and intimidation of voters, while others called for stiffer penalties for those involved in political violence during elections.
2.11.3. Another approach suggested as a way to reduce incidences of violence and intimidation was for the Bill to bar people from milling around polling stations. Others proposed the holding of joint rallies by political parties as a way of reducing political violence.
2.12. Electoral Court
2.12.1. Participants lamented that the process of deciding election petitions in the Electoral Court is too slow. As such, permanent judges must be appointed to exclusively preside over the Electoral Court in terms of Section 183 of the Constitution. Participants also called for the Bill to create an enforcement mechanism for electoral laws.
3.0 RECOMMENDATIONS
Having analysed the Bill, gathered the contributions from Zimbabweans across the country, and guided by Sections 119 and 155 of the Constitution, the Committee is pleased to make the following recommendations which must all be implemented by 31st March, 2018;
3.1. The Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs needs to table before Parliament a Bill with all-encompassing electoral reforms in order to make the Act compliant with the Constitution.
3.2. The Bill must provide for enforceable punitive measures to eliminate political violence before, during and after elections.
3.3. There must be a clear provision for voter education as a requirement before polls.
3.4. The Bill must have a clause which will require ZEC to print voter education and polling materials in Braille and all the official languages of Zimbabwe.
3.5. The Electoral Court must be reconstituted in terms of S.1. 83 of the Constitution in order to create conflict management mechanisms at all stages of the electoral cycle.
3.6. A clause must be inserted providing for how the disabled can be assisted as well as for the setting up of polling infrastructure which addresses the challenges of the physically handicapped.
3.7. The Bill should provide for the disabled and illiterate to choose who should assist them inside the polling booth to vote.
3.8. The Bill should also address the right to vote of those in the diaspora, prisoners, those in hospitals, allow for a special vote for those who will be away on duty on the day of the polls such as doctors and nurses.
3.9. ZEC must be allowed its independence so that it has power to invite foreign observers and approve local and international observers as well.
3.10. There is need for amendment or outright repeal of statutes that have an inimical impact on elections such as POSA, AIPPA and the Broadcasting Services Act.
3.11. The Electoral Amendment Bill should give effect to Section 17 of the Constitution by making provision for gender equality so that the 50% women’s quota threshold is clearly implemented and guaranteed in all elections.
3.12. Clause 133 H (2) of the Electoral Act should be amended so that the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission (ZHRC) is not included as part of the Special Investigations Committee, but has power to carry out its own independent investigations. This will ensure the independence of the ZHRC.
3.13. In order to uphold the provisions of Sections 67 and 243 (1) of the Constitution, the Bill should clearly give ZHRC the mandate to monitor, assess and ensure the observance of human rights before, during and after elections.
In future, in order to ensure the highest quality of legislation, legal framework for elections must be planned for well in advance.
4.0CONCLUSION
A comprehensive approach to amending the Electoral Act would address many gaps in the electoral law and inconsistencies to the Constitution, thereby bringing voter confidence to the polls. This would also create a conducive environment for credible, free and fair elections.
HON. RUNGANI: Mr. Speaker Sir, I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. MANGWENDE: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Tuesday, 6th March, 2018.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. RUNGANI: Mr. Speaker Sir, I move that Order of the Day, Number 3 be stood over until Order of the Day, Number 4 has been disposed of.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
RATIFICATION OF THE MARRAKESH AGREEMENT
ESTABLISHING THE WTO AGREEMENT
Fourth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Marrakesh Agreement establishing the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Agreement.
Question again proposed.
THE MINISTER OF INDUSTRY, COMERCE AND ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. BIMHA): Mr. Speaker
Sir, as you may recall that in October last year, the then Deputy Minister of Industry and Commerce, Hon. Chiratidzo Mabuwa presented the Protocol amending the Marrakesh Agreement establishing the WTO. To refresh your memory Mr. Speaker Sir, allow me to highlight the following points;
In terms of Section 327 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, a
Protocol does not bind Zimbabwe until it has been approved by Parliament. Zimbabwe is a member of the WTO and is expected to ratify the Protocol of amendment. As highlighted above, after the presentation of the Protocol by my former Deputy Minister, Parliament instructed that the Protocol be assessed by the Portfolio Committee on Industry and Commerce before debate here in Parliament, which report we wait to hear and debate. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
HON. RUNGANI: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. MABUWA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Tuesday, 6th March, 2018.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. RUNGANI: Mr. Speaker Sir, I move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 5 to 8 be stood over until Order of the Day, Number 9 has been disposed of.
HON. TOFFA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
HARDSHIPS AFFECTING ORPHANS AND VULNERABLE
CHILDREN IN ZIMBABWEAN INSTITUTIONS AND THE
SOCIETY IN GENERAL
HON. DZIVA: Mr. Speaker Sir, I move the motion standing on behalf of the First Lady, Her Excellency, Hon. Mnangagwa that:
DEEPLY CONCERNED with the hardships affecting orphans and vulnerable children in institutions and in Zimbabwean society in general;
APPLAUDING the great efforts that some Children’s Homes are doing, given the prevailing difficult socio-economic environment;
NOTING WITH CONCERN the cultural barriers that discourage the practice of adoption of orphans and vulnerable children in Zimbabwe, and the apparent lack of clear policies and legal framework for adoption of these children;
COGNISANT that Zimbabwe is a signatory to regional and international instruments (African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child; and the UN Convention for the Rights of the Child) that recognises the right to a name and identity as one of the fundamental human rights;
FURTHER COGNISANT that these rights are also enshrined in
Section 81 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe;
DISAPPOINTED that in spite of the existence of these instruments, that protect and uphold the rights of the children, orphans and vulnerable children in Zimbabwe continue to face challenges in the acquisition of birth certificates;
DISHEARTENED that the withholding of birth records by hospitals due to outstanding maternal user fees, coupled with the prohibitive provisions in the current outdated Birth Registration Act, inhibit acquisition of birth certificates for children in difficult circumstances:
NOW THEREFORE, this House calls upon -
- The Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs to urgently review the legislation relating to child adoption and acquisition of birth certificates;
- The Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare and the Juvenile Courts to remove all bureaucracy associated with child adoption procedures;
- The Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare to ensure timeous disbursement of grants to Children’s Homes;
- Churches, Traditional Leaders and Members of Parliament to champion the child adoption cause by making efforts to change people’s attitudes and mindsets;
- The Ministry of Health and Child Care to stop forthwith the withholding of birth records for non-payment of maternity fees;
- The Ministry of Home Affairs and Culture to closely monitor and supervise the operations of the Registrar-General’s Office to ensure effective and diligent service delivery to the nation and to replicate the Electronic Queue Management System currently found at the Registrar General’s Office in Harare, to other centres especially the remote areas;
- Government to consider amnesty for birth certificate registration for all children in Zimbabwe without birth certificates for various reasons.
HON. TOFFA: I second.
HON. DZIVA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir for according me this opportunity to debate the motion that was raised due to the hardships and challenges that orphans are facing across the nation and the challenges that the children’s homes are encountering. It is of great concern Mr. Speaker Sir that in our communities we have many challenges that are faced by orphans and vulnerable children. However, our communities have done very good work that they have supported and catered for some children’s homes on their own behalf. I would like to commend these facilities as they have demonstrated that they are doing the best they can with the resources that they have. All the facilities are overwhelmed with regards to their capacity to provide and care for the children that are vulnerable.
Mr. Speaker Sir, due to these challenges, it is of great concern that we look into the issue of adoption. Adoption is one of the strategies that can be used as a long term solution to mitigate on the rise of children’s homes. However, Zimbabwe has sceptical attitudes to legal adoption. From the evidence gathered, many people are more receptive to informal adoption which is embodied in the context of our culture through the execution of the role of extended families. Mr. Speaker Sir, the statistics of formal adoptions per province, range from two to five children who are adopted in a year. This is a very low figure that is attributed by the following factors that I am going to give to you.
The first factor is fear to adopt caused by traditional and religious myths. Grave delays within the Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare and juvenile courts. The process can stretch from three months to over six years and is reportedly even longer for the mixed race children. There are stringent laws that are not accommodative of prospective parents who are not married and non-resident in Zimbabwe. There are vigorous screening processes. Applications demand full medical examinations, marriage assessments and psychological evaluations. This has affected the rate of adoption processes.
Mr. Speaker Sir, it is important to note that worldwide the laws that govern the process of adoption are strict and this is rightly so because there is need to ascertain beyond any reasonable doubt that children are being released in a suitable environment. However, there is need to strike a balance between what is required to protect the children and our desire to give them a descent home. Mr. Speaker Sir, it is also important to note that the issue of identity registration was of particular concern in this research, in particular the issue of birth certificates. For the purposes of emphasis, the right to a name and an identity is one of the fundamental rights of any individual in the region and international instruments that are signatory to our own country like the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of Children, the United Nations
Convention on Rights of Children and even our own Constitution.
Mr. Speaker Sir, Section 81 of our Constitution gives the full rights to children. The fact stands that regardless of these attractive frameworks, most children do not have birth certificates. The major causes for this scenario include among others, hospitals are withholding birth records because of outstanding fees regardless of the fact that the maternal health care is a constitutional right. This is a matter of serious concern. Birth confirmation search fees for birth records are highly pegged at $5 to $10, beyond the reach of most Zimbabweans given the fact that most of the people are living below the poverty datum line.
The current birth registration act provisions are outdated Mr.
Speaker Sir. They are not accommodative of the changing environment. The rules for registering children outside the country and the process costs as much as US$50. This is beyond the capacity of many parents or those that look after the children. Mr. Speaker, there are also long queues at the Registrar General’s office and it remains prevalent at the other provinces. The RG’s offices are not decentralised, hence too far from the people and costly to access. This must be corrected in accordance with our Constitution. The RG’s office in Harare is reportedly attending to 150 clients a day whilst other nine provinces’ figure, is merely 200 per day, is this a policy position? I think Government must do something about it. Many people are sent back home to bring relatives when in fact the RG has an obligation to issue birth certificates without sending people to bring their relatives. Government position is clear Mr. Speaker Sir, that the RG must issue the birth certificate without requirements to send any people back to bring their relatives.
Going forward, there is need to reconsider conditions for obtaining birth certificates with regards to children in some of the circumstances. These issues of registration have been seen even during the processes of registering for the Biometric Voter Registration that there are serious challenges and really need to be corrected.
Some of the challenges that are there and those who are vulnerable include:
- Children with mothers who neglect to take birth certificates for their children,
- Children who are abandoned and subsequently cared by others,
- Children whose mothers themselves do not have the birth certificates, this is a vicious cycle that should be broken.
- Children of aliens whose parents have no identity documents,
- Children of illegal immigrants in the diaspora (border jumpers ),
- Children born to parent, with pseudonyms,
- Children with parents with no identity documents,
- Children with deceased or unknown whereabouts of parents,
- Children who reside in illegal structures (squatter camps).
All these are excluded and I think the Government must take appropriate measures in correcting these issues.
Recommendations
Mr. Speaker Sir, let me proffer some recommendations as viable to tackling the problems I have outlined above:
- The Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs must review legislation pertaining to child adoption and birth certificates. Relaxation of these laws will ensure that the rights to identity and livelihood are upheld. From a personal perspective, I believe that stringent laws were manmade, therefore, the onus rests upon man to make these laws less complex.
There should be consideration of the prevailing environment and responsiveness to the current challenges through provision of appropriate legislation.
- The Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare and the
Juvenile Courts should remove all bureaucracy associated with the adoption processes. This has affected the process of adopting children. So many people want to adopt children but the process is just tiresome and a lot of people end up giving up on the way.
- Churches, traditional leaders and Members of Parliament, here in this House should be engaged because these are the influential people within society with the capacity of changing people’s attitudes towards the issue of adoption and if they champion the cause, they will go on advocacy and give awareness to the people, then it will make life easier for people in our communities. So, I strongly recommend Members of Parliament to participate in this process.
- Measures should be introduced to ensure that the corporate world
is stepping up its corporate social responsibility, through the provision of scholarships, medical care and food among other needs to Children’s homes. We have a lot of companies in our country that are doing mining and other activities, on their social and corporate responsibility; we also urge them to take this responsibility to the various Children’s Homes that are in our country.
- The Social Welfare Ministry should ensure that distribution of food to Children’s Homes is done timeously. This is important because it has come with a lot of challenges, so these children also need balanced diet a lot of support from the Government itself, so the Ministry of Social Welfare should really take charge in time.
- The Ministry of Home Affairs should closely monitor and supervise the operations of the Registrar-General, to ensure that they uphold their mandate and serve the people diligently. This is important.
- The Electronic Queue Management System in Harare’s Registrar General’s Office should be cascaded to other remote centres to replicate the ease in queue evident in Harare. The Registrar General’s Office should also attend to special cases in other centres on Saturday and Sunday, as it is done in Harare. This is seen as discrimination, as all focus is only on Harare and yet when someone is in Bulawayo or in
Lupane, they cannot take a birth certificate or an ID on a Sunday or
Saturday. So, this facility should be opened in all the other provinces.
It is also important to consider the provision of a blanket amnesty for birth certificate registration for children. All the children must just have amnesty in the registration of birth certificates because these children, if they are not registered, would not be able to go to school. Our Constitution also mandates us as Government to make sure that our children are going to school with the right to free education.
As I conclude, let me emphasise that if we fail to intervene practically, these children will end up being a menace to society. Failure to invest in these children’s future means they will grow up to be unemployed and end up populating the prisons because they would not be having anything to do except resorting to crime. This situation is a time bomb which has potential to destabilise the next generation. Mr. Speaker Sir, I appeal that these issues need immediate attention and must be resolved.
Before I sit down, I also want to thank the various Children’s Homes that are doing a lot of good work in supporting the orphans and in supporting the vulnerable children. I will also end by quoting our Holy Bible, Deuteronomy 15 verse 11 “The poor shall never cease out of the land, therefore, I command thee, saying, thou shall open hands wide unto thy brother, to the poor, and to the needy, in our land” In Psalms 83 verse 3, it says, the poor and the fatherless, we must do justice to them and help their situation. I submit this motion to you Mr. Speaker Sir. I thank you.
HON. TOFFA: Thank you very much Hon. Speaker for affording me this opportunity to debate this motion. Mr. Speaker Sir, I will focus on the birth registration records, IDs. Mr. Speaker Sir, this motion has been debated many times in this House and also listening to Hon. Chasi, the Chairperson of the Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee, you heard him just now speak to the issue of birth records, identity cards and of the reasons why people cannot register to vote. It is almost like birth record documentation is a favour. It is actually a right. It is important that as a nation we treat it as such. It is actually enshrined in the Constitution Chapter 3, Section 35 – the right to documentation.
Mr. Speaker Sir, my participation in seconding of this motion has not just come from me. I have been asked by members of the community of Bulawayo. The women have said to me, Hon. Toffa, we ask you to go to Hon. Mnangagwa and speak on our behalf. I am not speaking of Bulawayo alone but on behalf of all Members of Parliament across the nation, constituencies and provinces where you get people coming to you thinking that you are going to resolve their problems because you are a Member of Parliament, legislator and policy maker.
You find that time after time, you cannot resolve the issues because of some of the issues raised by the first lady who was represented by Hon. Dziva. Some of the issues such as the denial of birth records by the hospitals who are contradicting the Constitution that talks to the fact that women should be allowed free maternal health.
Women are actually being victimised; birth records are being withheld. The children’s rights are also being infringed. Those are some of the issues that people are facing out there.
I would like to emphasise on some of the recommendations that were given by the first lady. I would like to quote from “(f) …that the Ministry of Home Affairs and Culture to closely monitor and supervise the operations of the Registrar-General’s office”. This is so because the Registrar-General’s office is very stringent. They are not flexible or accommodative; they do not give women options that will allow them to register children at the end of the day.
Amnesty should also be given to all those that do not have birth certificates so that they can get identity cards. In fact, I think it should be made mandatory and ways should be found to make sure that there is ease of getting a birth record or birth certificate. The people who were affected or are victims of the Gukurahundi are also having problems in getting identity cards. In Matabeleland region and in Bulawayo, as alluded to by the Chairperson of the Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Committee, most of the people there do not have birth certificates because their parents were killed during the Gukurahundi era. So, there is a vicious cycle of members of the Matabeleland region not having birth certificates and birth records.
There is also another recommendation that we have that has not been included by the First Lady. It is to do with children born outside the country – in neighbouring countries. There is no policy that deals with the undocumented children or illegal immigrants based in the neighbouring country. I think this needs to be really looked into. The current policy that we have only addresses legal expatriates. In saying that, you find that because most of our people are going out to countries such as Botswana, South Africa, in the event that they have children outside the country and because of the different names that they have to use when they seek jobs there – when they come back into the country; because they are economic refugees, they earn very little money but you find that they are asked to pay $50 for the children that they will be bringing back into the country.
This $50 was pegged and the policy was set for legal expatriates such as doctors, nurses and teachers that were working outside the country. I would ask that this payment either be waivered or be scraped particularly because it is not pro-poor and also looking or listening to President Mnangagwa’s inauguration speech when he spoke about looking after the poor people and also in the First Lady’s speech- in the last paragraph where she is talking about the poor people.
Another area that needs to be seriously looked into is the accessibility of people. For example if one is born in Tsholotsho, Nkayi or Gwanda, you find that they have to go back to these areas. Most of our people cannot afford bus fare and in most cases, you will find that the person was either born in Tsholotsho, Gwanda, Nkayi or wherever. They did not ever go back there and they do not even know most of the people there. If they have to go back and seek the assistance of the chiefs or the birth registrar in that area- you will find that they will need to look for accommodation and they have to feed themselves. They have to bear all these costs.
I think it is important that this issue is looked into and decentralised, particularly because we are now computerised. We can now be able to make contact with the different areas and assistance should be given to those that are seeking birth records, birth certificates and so on.
A few of the other obstacles that our people are coming across, as I spoke about - the migration, another hindrance is the fees that they have to pay which was spoken to by the mover of the motion. The bureaucracy needs to be seriously looked into.
I would like to give a typical example of one man that has been trying to get his birth certificate. His name is Mr. Dube and he comes from Bulawayo. He was born in the Esigodini area. He has been countless times to Esigodini to try and get his birth certificate so that he can get his National Identity which will entitle him to vote and which will also enable him to register his own children. In the end he said, ‘I have given up Hon. Toffa, there is no use in trying anymore.’ He spoke in Ndebele saying, that ‘I have now given up, I have tried so many times but I think the best thing that you would do for me is to give me a death certificate because I am as good as dead. It seems to be the easiest thing this Government can do.’
I am sure that all the people who have died without securing birth certificates have got their death certificates. So, it is important that we look at this because we need to give people back their lives, particularly the people that were affected in the Gukurahundi era. This is an opportunity that this Government can take. It is an opportunity to give those people back their lives; it is an opportunity to give those children their right to participate as Zimbabweans.
There is also another effect with regards to the Gukurahundi era, particularly when it comes to the customs and norms of the people of Zimbabwe. Mr. Speaker Sir, I am sure you are well aware that if somebody is using a name that is foreign to themselves in the African custom, people are of the belief that everything that is happening to them in their lives and those of their children is being affected because they are carrying the wrong surname.
There is a Mr. Nyoni who is based in the United Kingdom who phoned me after an interview I had done on Studio 7, with regards to birth certificates and birth records. He said, ‘I have been registered in the name that is not of my father’s. My name is Nyoni but I cannot register in the name of my father because my parents were killed during Gukurahundi. What is it that I can do to make sure that I am able to register? He feels that if his birth record is corrected and he uses the correct name, everything will go well for him. I am sure you will understand what I am talking about.
So, again this is an opportunity that we can, as a Parliament, Government and the President can take this opportunity to give amnesty to make it mandatory, to make sure that everybody in the country that does not have a birth certificate or a birth record gets one. This is one of the issues that is causing a lot of animosity on the ground. These issues if addressed, you will find that it will help with the peace and reconciliation process.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I would like to end by saying, this affects mainly women and children. There is another challenge that needs to be addressed with regards to the recommendations. At the moment, you find that only the mother can go and register a child. It must also be made possible that whoever is living with the child, because there are children that have been dumped by their parents, there are children that were brought by the malaichas from South Africa and there are children that have been left with their fathers. However, our Constitution stipulates that the maternal parent is the one that can only register the child. What happens in situations where fathers are the ones that also have those children? It is another area that needs to be looked at.
Having said that, Mr. Speaker Sir, I plead that this motion be given and dealt with in the seriousness and with the utmost urgency and importance. Thank you.
+HON. MPALA: Thank you Mr. Speaker for giving me this opportunity to second on the debate that was brought by Hon. A. Mnangagwa, Hon. Dziva and Hon. Toffa who have seconded this motion. Issues to do with orphans especially those who do not have any documentation and who are not being taken care of properly; it is not a new topic but something that has been debated before. This has given me zeal to also contribute on this motion for this is one issue that most of the Zimbabweans are complaining about and facing challenges on it regardless of the constituency that one is coming from.
I would like to talk based on my constituency Lobengula, which is one of the old locations in Bulawayo, which has so many orphans that are staying there. Most of them were born outside the country, for example countries like South Africa. Most of the parents have passed on and the children are being taken care of by their grandmothers.
The challenge that most orphans or guardians face is that they are not allowed to assist the orphans to get any identification document, for example in a case whereby the child was born outside the country or in South Africa, from the birth record, they will insist that they require a confirmation letter from any of the living parents or guardian.
I also want to add another point that if they have agreed that any guardian can assist in acquiring any of the identification documents for the orphans, the amount that is being charged is too high. For example, in Msiteli in Bulawayo, they request for $50.00 for citizenship and $20 for border jumping which adds up to $80.00, which is a big amount that no parent can be able to afford. There are some grandmothers that I know, for example, one grandmother who takes care of five grandchildren who were born outside the country in South Africa. If you multiply $70 by 5, where is one going to get that money in order that they are able to get identification documents? What it means is that those children will not be able to even go to school. Even if there are jobs, they will not be able to get employed because the guardian who will be staying with these children will not be able to assist them, especially financially for them to get any documentation.
I also want to contribute on the regulations that are there for one to take care of orphans. For example, if I can get an orphanage home where I keep orphans, there are so many regulations that one has to go through so that you are able to come up with an orphanage. These rules are prohibitive to so many people who want to take care of orphans. You will realise that most of the orphans do not have anyone to stand as a witness for them to get any documentation. I also want to urge the Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs not to make strict regulations, especially on orphans. Most of these children, especially the girl child end up opting to get married for that is the only thing that they will be able to do since they are unable to go to school.
I also want to highlight on all the children that we have in Zimbabwe, especially children whose parents are aliens. We all know especially in this House Mr. Speaker Sir, that most of the aliens have passed on and left their grandchildren who will not be able to trace their genealogy. If we ask them to go back to their genealogy, you will realise that some of them come from Malawi, Zambia or any other country that I will not mention.
The other thing that I want to request from the Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs is that they should work on these laws so that all the children are able to acquire birth certificates for those parents who are not there. When they try to obtain their birth certificates they are asked to go back and come back to us as Members of Parliament. When you try to go with them you are given so many regulations which no one is able to follow. All of us will go back to our constituencies or even reach an extent where if you are no longer a
Member of Parliament, you will not have helped especially the orphans.
In Matebeleland region, I think it is one of the regions which is mostly affected by this issue - why? It is because most of the children whom we gave birth to prefer to go to South Africa and when they bore children outside the country they send them back without any written document. As a parent, you end up facing so many challenges. My request is that if the Ministry could try to work out on the laws that they craft for one to acquire a birth certificate. My wish is that if the Ministry does that, you will even be able to assist those who do not have birth certificates. I thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
HON. NDUNA: I would like to thank the mover of the motion, Hon. Dziva, standing in for Her Excellency or for the First Lady. I also want to congratulate the seconder of the motion, Hon. Toffa for bringing up such a motion which is pregnant with consistencies and very key to the root and fundamentals of our future generation. Aware that 10% of the population of children in Zimbabwe have no documents, they do not have birth certificates and they certainly need to be documented so that they have their rights as enshrined in the Constitution…
Hon. Mukwangwariwa having been making noise.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. MUTOMBA): Hon.
Mukwangwariwa, order.
HON. NDUNA: Mr. Speaker Sir, we are all creatures of the
Constitution and a nation is judged by the way it upholds its own
Constitution. If we do not register the kids as enshrined in the prayer by Hon. Dziva, we are shooting ourselves in the foot and we are ultravires our own Constitution. Therefore, we cannot be said to be a nation.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the prayer that she alluded to – at the tail end she touched on the Bible. I have about five verses that I want to touch on to complement and augment that right that she spoke about. Mr. Speaker Sir, Psalms 34:17 says, “My people cry and the Lord delivers them from all their troubles.” We are crying here today as an august House and we are saying we need to be delivered from all this scourge of unregistered nationals for which we have the power as enshrined in the Constitution to repeal and address the concerns of our population.
Psalms 127:1 -2 says, “The builders build but in vain if they build without the involvement of the Lord.” On verse 2, it says, “The watchmen they watch but in vain if there is no involvement of the Lord.” When you start any session on any day, you are always commending the
House to the Lord. So, without that prayer Mr. Speaker Sir, we have no
‘look forward.’ Therefore, we need to get the power that is enshrined in the Bible as she has alluded to, to make sure that we make laws for the good governance and order of the people of Zimbabwe.
Jeremiah 33:3 says, “Call unto me and I will show you great and mighty things that which you knew not and I have plans for good and not of evil, plans to see you have an expected end.” Mr. Speaker Sir, I say this because if we do not unshackle ourselves from this bondage of lack of documentation of our people and our children, we are not using the power that is in the Bible and the power that makes sure that we conduct our business in an unimpeded manner all the time. I will also say to you Mr. Speaker Sir, one day when Peter and John were moving, they said, ‘we do not have silver and gold but the power that we have, we will give unto you’ – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. MUTOMBA): Less noise in the House Hon. Members.
HON. NDUNA: Mr. Speaker Sir, we have the power to enact, amend and align the laws with the Constitution. However, I also want to say, in the same vein like Peter and John said, ‘we do not have money but we have the power’, that power Mr. Speaker Sir, you have always called for timelines. The prayer that Hon. Dziva referred to was devoid of the timelines, it might have said ‘expeditiously’. I call upon this House to adopt and change laws and to align them with the Constitution by June, 2018 to make sure that these vulnerable children and orphans whom we talk about are registered.
It is unfortunate Mr. Speaker Sir, we did not adopt our Constitution in the manner that Kenya did. Kenya had timelines to say, by this day and by this time – ours was prolonged and an open-ended process, but it is here that I stand on this podium and call upon these laws to be aligned and to be adhered to according to the Constitution by June 2018. Mr. Speaker Sir, I will go onto the ten points that I have put here after I have spoken about the Bible. The issue of babies born in prisons – It is said that you take away some rights when you send somebody for incarceration Mr. Speaker Sir. These babies, as we adopt an open prison system for our women - let us, at that point, give the impetus of registering our children that are born in prison, who are being incarcerated for the sins of their fathers and their mothers.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Birth and Registration Act implores and pushes us to register all children within 42 days or six weeks after birth. We just need to adhere to that. It should be enforced that every child, irrespective of the fact that the mother or the father has a birth certificate or an I.D., they should be registered right at the point of birth or within the timeframe and the timelines so stipulated in the Act. Mr. Speaker Sir, the Ministry of Labour has taken on them the issue of being a parent for those undocumented children that are on the streets when they want registration certificates or birth certificates. It should not be a hide and seek issue. It should be in the open and I implore Mr. Speaker Sir, that by June 2018, for the Minister of Labour to come and be open about parenting those children that are nameless, who are on the streets, who have no homes, who are vulnerable and who have no parents.
They need to make a blanket proclamation for all those children by
June 2018 to have in particular birth and registration certificates. All those children that we are seeing on the streets and those children that are used on the streets for seeking benevolence, let us see them seeking benevolence but above all, let us give them registration certificates so that the generations, all after them, after we have gone can have birth and registration certificates.
Mr. Speaker Sir, there is an issue of pathology and DNA for people that die without documentation and those that die without birth records and relatives. For Chegutu in particular, we have about twenty bodies that have not been claimed for years because of the scourge for lack of birth and registration certificates. Mr. Speaker Sir, it is not good for anybody to lie in a mortuary for a long time without being buried. It casts a spell on a nation. The people that I am talking about, as you go there, there are bones that are just strewn outside the mortuary waiting for a letter from the Social Welfare Department and the Ministry that deals with registration to give a go ahead for those people to be buried. This might be one of the reasons why we do not have good rains in our nation because there are bodies of people that are lying in mortuaries that have not been buried humanely, because of lack of registration and birth certificates.
This is where it starts Mr. Speaker Sir. I make a clarion call that the Minister of Labour and Social Welfare should make a proclamation to give a blanket go ahead for all those bodies in mortuaries, across the nation, to immediately be given a decent burial. Especially, I am referring to those that speak to lack of identification, lack of relativity series, lack of pathology and DNA tests so that we can have a new start in terms of our mortuaries and our hospitals that are keeping for time without end, these bodies without burying them.
The last point Mr. Speaker Sir, we need to use what we have to get what we want. We are endowed with ubiquitous amount of mineral wealth, as Hon. Toffa has alluded to. Let us use corporate social responsibility but in an extended manner to say, we have in those societies mining houses. Let us use some claims that are held for speculative purposes to empower those local communities so that the resources arising from there can be utilised to take care of the vulnerable in our society so that in turn, they can also be registered. It all begins because we have no resources but tiri kufa nenyota makumbo ari mumvura. Hatimbotorai mamine acho tiite make sure that our children are registered without any impediments. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank you for giving me this opportunity to vociferously, eloquently and effectively debate on this motion that is quite pregnant with very important issues. I thank you.
*HON. MUDYIWA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I want to thank the mover of the motion, Hon. Dziva on behalf of our First Lady, Hon. Auxillia Mnangagwa and the seconder, Hon. Toffa on the motion on orphans. I want to say that, orphans are in a number of ways. We have them in our constituencies. For some, both parents have departed because of various reasons, some through accidents or diseases - but all of them are orphans we have in our constituencies. They all need to be taken care of and they need our help. Some of the orphans are looked after by relatives, like grandmothers and grandfathers.
There are many things happening to these children, including abuse, especially when they are under the custody of relatives. Some end up being raped and sexually abused whilst they are still young. When it comes to orphans, as Members of Parliament, it is a big issue that we are seized with and we should come up with ways on how we can help these orphans. In my constituency, there is a case that I was told yesterday. There is a woman who was sick and she had a baby less than one month, she was advised to stop breastfeeding and within a week, she died. The baby has been left in the custody of the grandmother who does not have anything.
This issue has been brought to me as the Member of Parliament so that I can help. It is very difficult for the Hon. MP on how to help. To what extend should you go in helping orphans like these? What I am saying is that the idea of adoption is a very good thing. I think they should not be abused like what has been articulated before by Hon. Dziva. On the issue of adoption, there are a number of things that are impeding the process and they end up giving up because of the processes which are very long and the challenges that they face when they want to adopt a child. There is this old thing, I would like to encourage those who want to adopt children that they should not be afraid of any traditional beliefs. There is nothing that will hound you when you are doing a good thing like looking after orphans. What we should do is to encourage the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare that their requirements should be bearable. They should not make it hard for a person to adopt.
I also support what Hon. Dziva said that there should be an investigation into our laws on how these children are looked after, that it should not be hard for someone who has commited themselves to look after these children. This challenge of orphans is a thing that touches all of us in our constituencies, especially in rural constituencies. I see that Children’s homes are being started by churches but they are very few and they cannot accommodate all the orphans that we have in the villages. Some of those orphans, we do not even know that they exist.
So, I think we should have more of these homes and Government should also do something because these homes are facing a lot of challenges for them to look after the children properly.
I remember one of the churches which owns an orphanage, they were able to build houses and then they looked for foster mothers for the children. They will give a number of children to foster parents and they live as a family, so that they also experience a family life with a father and mother. This is a very good job which is done by churches, so they should be assisted in putting homes like that, because most of our churches cannot afford to build such homes as well as looking after the children. Therefore, the Government should chip in.
I think Government should build homes where these orphans should be looked after. I would like to thank the First Lady, Mrs Mnangagwa because she visited orphanages, giving them some food and just meeting them made them feel that there are people who think about them. As Hon. Members of Parliament, in our constituencies, I think we should also visit these orphans and throw some parties for them. You will be surprised to find that we have a lot of them in our constituencies who are facing challenges that have been articulated in this House. I want to support the recommendations which were articulated by Hon. Dziva in the motion that the laws for adoption should be relaxed so that people do not hesitate to adopt children.
Those who are in need of birth certificates, everything that concerns that child’s future; I think there should be lenience when it comes to people who want to look after these children. I thank you.
HON. MGUNI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. This is a very emotional motion that has been moved by the First Lady, whereby Hon. Dziva moved the motion of her behalf. I would like to contribute some of the unforeseen matters that are arising, especially with birth registrations and other matter that came from this debate.
First of all, a birth certificate is a security document. Therefore, I have got insight information that the people who are dealing with them from the offices are only data capturers; that means they do not have rank to make any decision. They just follow what is written there. Their Provincial Heads are not even Directors to make also a decision. The whole staff set-up in a province cannot make a decision. They have to look for a Director at headquarters in Harare who can make a decision.
Now, imagining in Tsholotsho, there is a unique situation about a child – you cannot make a decision, you will just read the line of the Act and for a decision to be made, you need a person from headquarters to make that decision. So, that is why the First Lady’s debate was saying can it be decentralised to reach the last person by also empowering those officers in Home Affairs to have at least a high ranked official in their offices in those rural areas, because the rank there does not allow them to make decisions; if you are data capturers, what decisions are you going to make?
So, already the system is wrong. However, you cannot teach an old dog new tricks because we have been trying to show them and some people are resisting that system thinking it works, yet it is now torturing those orphans and the vulnerable. The other big thing is social welfare, the Labour and Social Welfare Ministry has got permission to run these orphanage homes but what they do not have are the powers to register those children with Home Affairs. They were not given enough powers to organise and register them, even some churches face difficulties. There are certain churches that have those orphanage homes but when they go to Home Affairs, the data capturers still read that line because they cannot make the decision.
They will read the line where they are supposed to say we need this and this for the child, that is why we see that there is that deadlock. There is nothing moving. Also if you look at – I went personally, physically, three days in a Gukurahundi area of Tsholotsho South and North, I was with Mr. Mudede, the Registrar General. We had to organise all those people who were affected by their documents; we issued in three days; we managed to issue something like 2 300 documents, but the challenge we met again was that most of the relatives were in South Africa. They could not come to witness for other children, although we tried to use – because we were high ranked officers, we could use our discretion and give some people – that is why we reached 2 300 in number.
Now, imagine a junior data capturer, people coming even from
South Africa during holidays trying to present the case, they would not accept it, because they cannot use their powers. They have no powers to change the Act. Therefore, we need to go to South Africa, because South Africa in 1997, they managed to give Zimbabweans documents without needing any proof or putting stringent measures. They said all people who jumped the border into South Africa and you are Zimbabwean, come forward. People came forward and they asked where were you born? Tsholotsho. They were given a document that was showing that you are a foreigner in that country, why? There was too much armed robbery and housebreaking so they wanted to capture fingerprints and give you a document so that if there is crime they could trace who committed that crime. Here, in Zimbabwe are failing to give our own people identity documents but South Africa could give a foreigner – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – We can do it if we are willing because some of them will turn into criminals and we will not trace them with any forensic investigation. You cannot find anyone who is not documented. We need to make a deadline or an announcement that on this day, all children who do not know where they come from or whose parents are dead can come forward and then we issue them with documents so that they are traceable. That is another thing that we need to do.
Some people think that it is the Ministry of Home Affairs that charges that $50 for a foreign born child and the $20 for a border jumper. Some South African people based in Zimbabwe, when their children are born in South Africa, they bring them through other illegal means where they jump the borders. Border jumping is an offence which is pegged at $20 by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development when he presented the Budget here. He announces all these figures here in Parliament and now the Ministry of Home Affairs is just implementing those Statutory Instruments that are brought by the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development.
Therefore, that is where all the Members of Parliament should dispute and say no, the $50 of a foreign born child is too much because those people already went to South Africa suffering. They do not have money. As we are talking now, this is affecting the voter’s registration in the Matabeleland region because there is no one who has got $50 plus $20 and that brings a total of $70. If you convert it to the SADC currency, it is about P1 000 or R1 100. They cannot afford that.
The other thing that we meet there is that there are a lot of pregnancies especially on girl children that are orphaned. They fall pregnant at the age of 13 or 14 years. You find that someone who is a guardian or is acting to be mother is negotiating with the culprit in a court. When we go and try to defend that child, the case is thrown out of court because the guardian who is not the proper mother has already negotiated with the culprit to pay something which is in the form of lobola when a child is thirteen years. The case is thrown out of court and look at how sympathetic it is. It is disastrous if we do not have a correct Act to protect those orphans.
As Members of Parliament, we need to start programmes where we identify orphans. We must take lead so that we channel them to the churches. We build homes where we can keep them so that we represent and defend them because there are some people who are after these orphans, especially very unethical human beings in the form of men. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
HON. MAJOME: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir, for according me the opportunity to debate on this important motion that concerns the rights and welfare of children. I rise because as a Zimbabwean, I am proud that Section 81 of the Constitution – Rights of the Children; which the hon. mover of the motion is seeking is being discussed and I salute her for that, needless to say that I am whole-heartedly in support of the motion.
I wish to debate this motion from the perspective of the prayer – I would like to talk about child adoption, office of the Registrar-General as well as the obligations, meaning and implications of what is guaranteed in our Constitution as far as citizens are concerned and the rights to documentation and so on. I truly want to applaud Hon.
Mnangagwa for drawing the spot light on this very hidden aspect of Zimbabwean life. This quiet corner of the adoption of children is an issue that as a society, we have been avoiding.
We have millions of children who are in need of care, who are not abandoned and who do not have people who are able to love and live with them. Some of these children, as Hon. Mnangagwa has said, are in children’s homes. I speak because in Harare West Constituency, there are nine children’s homes. I would like to highlight the names because they are homes where children live, but have no mother or father or anyone who is willing to live with them. These homes do a sterling amount of work in trying to raise these children so that they are able to function in society. I am extremely proud because if it was not the work of these children’s homes, these children would be forgotten.
I am proud because recently, some of the children in one of the children’s home called Tariro Youth Project; a young men – I will not say his name but he has done us proud by acquiring 14 points at A’ level. He was at Mt Pleasant High. He is a child raised at a children’s home there in Marlborough. He has been able to do that and fortunately for him, he obtained a scholarship to go and study in the United States of America. He has been able to do that because there is an institution that took him in and is looking after him.
Again, another boy child from that same children’s home recently got married and wedded two years ago. Just last month, I was glad to learn that the couple now has a baby. I understand that because he also has a brother who was raised in that children’s home. I am saying this so that we are reminded of just how the lives of children and the future of children that have no immediate parents to look after them also require care and protection and support so that when they grow up in the society, they can start their own families. They should not be stigmatised. We need to give these children a chance.
There is another child from another children’s home whose wedding I attended. It was a very special wedding out there in Beatrice. I understand they are also expecting. I say this Mr. Speaker Sir because it is wonderful news when children who are in such difficult circumstances come out of them and excel. Thank God for the people who have the spirit to set up children’s homes.
Beyond that, these children’s homes are operating in very difficult circumstances and I am glad that Hon. Mnangagwa has mentioned in her prayer that the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare must ensure timeous disbursement of grants to children’s homes. The homes are truly struggling and I want to just use this opportunity to thank those of us – some of us are Members of Parliament here or some people who are in the society who do understand that children who live in children’s homes require day to day necessities in the same way that we require in our homes in terms of groceries, clothing and so on. I hope that there will be more Members of Parliament who know that these children who live in these homes also need to have money spent on them.
I say this because as Hon. Mnangagwa has mentioned, there are difficulties in disbursing these grants from the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare. Sadly, some of the time, these children in children’s homes are stigmatised because while they are enlisted on the Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM), the money has not been disbursed. So these children are just known that ah! ava vana ve BEAM as if BEAM has begot children. I really want to support that. So, the reason I am saying this is that we are fortunate that there are homes that are looking after these children but these homes are struggling because there is little money available.
However, there are people in our own homes, as we are sitting here as Hon. Members of Parliament and also other members of our society out there, who have room, not only in their homes but in their hearts that they can take these children who do not have a natural parent or close family member to look after. It is not a secret that the majority of the children in these children’s homes are of the African race, they are black in colour, they are very few children who are of different races but I salute Hon. A. Mnangagwa because she has brought this issue of the taboo of adoption. There are certain aspects in our culture that we need to re-examine as a nation that are not helping us go very far. I am hoping that Hon. Members can also move to remove this stigma and this fear of taking children who need to be raised because we are afraid that their clan or dzinza is not going to support us and so on. These are just children.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I hope that there is a campaign or a change of mindset that allows us to take those children who are in need of care and look after them, maybe not to adopt them but also to foster them. Unfortunately, the law around adoption as well as the practice around adoption has been following this closed mindset that discourages adoption. There are so many bureaucratic procedures for people who want to adopt children. A person has to go through hoops to adopt a child.
I want to submit that it is in the best interest of the children, particularly those who do not have anyone to live with. It is not in their best interest to keep on restricting adoption procedures and requirements. Of course, we must look out for the interest of the children but we must not be so restrictive.
In our African culture it is more or less taboo to adopt a stranger as a child, they are people from other jurisdictions, other nations that do not have this taboo who are interested in adopting children. I do not understand why we act like dogs in a manger where we ourselves do not want to adopt those children. We want them to stay in an institution but as I said, thank God, there are some institutions that are able to take in those children. We do not want to take those children into our homes. However, when somebody comes from outside who wants to love and take care of these children, we also put blockages. We are dogs in a manger.
I am not saying we must not think about the risks of maybe trafficking or abuse but from what I understand, we are excessively putting barriers and preventing some children whom we do not want to love ourselves to be loved by others. So, it is my hope that we re-open because we are in a new dispensation, I am hoping that a new dispensation can also come into our cultural mindset so that we open our homes to children and let those who want to take them, even out of the country, subject of course to the usual controls.
Nowadays it is very easy to track the welfare of children all over the world and to find out how they are doing. This can be done Mr. Speaker Sir. We even have embassies all over the world and I am sure even our Embassies can be enlisted to follow up and find out how a Zimbabwean child, born here but possibly allowed to be adopted by a foreigner is fairing. I think we are letting down children by doing this.
I would like to say a word briefly about paragraph (f), in Hon. A. Mnangagwa’s prayer. She proposed that the Ministry of Home Affairs closely monitors and supervises the operations of the Registrar General’s Office to ensure effective and diligent service delivery to the nation and to replicate the electronic queue management system currently found at the Registrar General’s Office in Harare to other centres especially the remote areas.
I want to salute the Registrar General for introducing this electronic management queue at Harare because it eases the agony of people who go there to get documentation which is their right. In terms of the Birth Registration Act, a person must register the birth of a child within 6 weeks of birth. This is very baby friendly; it is a baby friendly mechanism to speed up efficiency. Imagine a nursing mother with a child who is just under six weeks, waiting in the queues and the agony there, it is torture sometimes to go to the Registrar Generals’ office. The issue of devolution to other centres is absolutely important. It must not only be people in Harare who have the benefit of being saved from congestion. I want to plead through you Mr. Speaker, that I think we should also stop the bad habit that we have in Government institutions where if we want to introduce a technology or an improvement, it is introduced only in one place and only in Harare. My plea is that in future, when innovations are introduced, like in this particular case, this electronic queue management system, I am sure when the Registrar General wanted to introduce, I am sure the
Registrar’s office knows the number of registries that they have. I want to believe that it is good practice and good governance and equality of our regions to ensure that when they order such systems; they order them for all centres. I am sure the Registrar General knows the kind of traffic that is at other centres and simultaneously provides those facilities everywhere else so that we do not have to replicate what is in Harare.
On that score, while I am on the Registrar-General’s I want to applauded him for doing that, I am concerned that in this august House I asked a question to the Hon. Minister of Labour and Social Services about the Registrar General’s age. I asked what age is the Registrar General because I suspected that he is over the age of 65 years and I asked that if he is over the age of 65 years, why is he not retiring.
I asked this Mr. Speaker Sir, because we want to promote good governance and efficient management. We are a country that has just brought regime change at the top most level of Government. The former President, Robert Mugabe is no longer the President because
Zimbabweans across the political divide and also including this august House moved in order to remove him from office. One of the reasons was that as you stay and overstay, inefficiencies creeps in, the economies talk about diminishing marginal retains. It is my respectful view that in the same thinking of the new dispensation, people who hold office, who have stayed a certain amount of time, should really move out and let others take in. It is good for corporate governance. Some of these inefficiencies that we are seeing in these offices, particularly in the Registrar Generals’ office is because of overstay in office.
Because we are in a new dispensation, I was really dismayed to hear the Hon. Minister, because I was not here when my question was answered, I would have wanted to follow up this question. I noticed with regret that the Hon. Minister did not even bother to answer the simple question as to how old he is. She did not give his date of birth but instead she went on to lecture that I should not become personal. But Mr. Speaker Sir, a person who holds public office is of public interest, their age and the way that they serve. We should not shield that because we have interest of Zimbabweans to protect, in this particular interest, interest of children whom we protect in the Constitution in terms of the right to birth registration and so on. I am very concerned that on the other hand, the Hon. Minister of Finance indicated correctly that in the new dispensation, the Government is seeking to reduce possibly inefficiencies and rationalise the civil service and retire those who are over 65 years. I was really shocked that the Hon Minister of Social Welfare instead went on a lecture and even quoting the Bible about how age is recognised as a crown of glory only from God. She went very philosophical but she avoided this important question and went on to, in my view, inappropriately quote the Convention on the elderly.
If we want to solve this problem Mr. Speaker Sir, of difficulties in obtaining birth certificates and efficient systems and making sure that all children in Zimbabwe and all grown-ups enjoy the right to citizenship through birth registration documents, we must be serious about it. We must not protect one individual and have a sacred cow, I do not know for what reason. We need a totally different way of doing things, a refreshing breath of fresh air.
I do not think it serves the Government well to protect this one person whilst it is retiring other civil servants. Let us have new people who are progressive-minded and are not locked in the past but are of the future and not as conservative. That way, we will have great ease of doing business; we will be registering births from the comforts of our homes, from our laptops and so on and also getting passports. Mr.
Speaker Sir, there should not be contradiction in Government policy. This attitude that was shown by the Hon. Minister of Social Welfare actually undermines the new Government; the new thrust for ease of doing business, probity and good governance. It is my hope that in the interest of the children of Zimbabwe, there is Mr. Tobaiwa Mudede, if he is over the age of 65, he should also be retired.
If there is a need to closely monitor the operations of that office, it means there is a problem and sometimes we need to start right at the top. He served very well but I think it is time for more efficient and new ways of doing things. I can assure you Mr. Speaker, it will help us to ease congestion and to have more modern ways of doing things that are more progressive and in keeping with the way that the global trend is going. I thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
HON. RUNGANI: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. J. TSHUMA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Tuesday, 6th March, 2018.
On the motion of HON. RUNGANI seconded by HON. J. TSHUMA, the House adjourned at Twenty One Minutes to Five o’clock p.m. until Tuesday, 6th March, 2018.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Wednesday, 14th February, 2018
The National Assembly met at a Quarter-past Two o’clock p. m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. SPEAKER in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENTS BY THE HON. SPEAKER
VISITORS IN THE SPEAKER’S GALLERY
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have to acknowledge the presence in the Speaker’s Gallery, of students and teachers from First Class
Academy in Mutare. You are most welcome – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.]-
APPOINTMENTS AND CHANGES TO PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have to inform the House of changes to the membership of Portfolio Committees as follows;-
- P. Sibanda moves from the Committee on Media, Information, ICT and Cyber Security to the Committee on
Higher Education, Science and Technology Development.
- I. Gonese moves from the defunct Committee on Small and Medium Enterprise Development to the Committee on Primary and Secondary Education, Sport and Arts.
- Machingauta moves from the defunct Committee on Small and Medium Enterprise Development to the Committee on Mines and Energy.
- S. Chidhakwa moves from the defunct Committee on
Small and Medium Enterprise Development to the
Committee on Transport and Infrastructural Development.
- R. Muguti will serve on the Committee on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs.
- M. Mugidho will serve on the Committee on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs.
APOLOGIES FROM MINISTERS
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Members, I have not received any apology from any Hon. Minister but I am advised the Cabinet is sitting today because His Excellency the President only came back last night from a State visit in Botswana. Cabinet had to meet today. We were hoping that the members of Cabinet will be here by now but they are not in as yet.
HON. GONESE: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I really rise on a
matter of privilege to raise a matter of concern and I am sure that all Hon. Members are gravelly concerned about the absence of Ministers. It is not a new concern Mr. Speaker Sir, it is something we have raised time and again and we believe that the Executive must uphold the Constitution. It is clearly spelt out in Section 107 of the Constitution that all Vice Presidents, Ministers and Deputy Ministers have an obligation; it is not discretionary Mr. Speaker, it is an obligation which is clearly spelt out in the Constitution and above that, it is something which is also captured in our Standing Orders in terms of both Standing Order Numbers 26 and 63. In fact, the Standing Orders have gone further to say that it is contemptuous of Parliament if Hon. Ministers do not attend.
I am really worried Mr. Speaker Sir, that the Head of State who used to be the Leader of this august House and was very cognisant of the concerns raised time and again by us as Hon. Members about the attendance of Ministers; whilst we do appreciate that the Head of State and some Cabinet Ministers had been on a State visit to Botswana, I believe that it was imperative for His Excellency to plan his diary accordingly and ensure that either the Cabinet meeting will have started and ended in time for the Ministers to attend Question Time or tentatively, to have re-scheduled that same Cabinet meeting. I know that the people of Zimbabwe are expectant that on this day, on a Wednesday, matters of concern are raised by their representatives in this august
House and when the Ministers are not available; when we have one
Deputy Minister present, that is a disturbance to the nation of Zimbabwe.
I would like to request that your Office conveys the concerns of this august House. Previously, we have been informed that the Head of State was going to prioritise things accordingly and ensure that we do not have this lacuna where the Ministers are not available but alas, today we find – and it appears Mr. Speaker that the more things change, the more they remain the same. This is the same thing which we used to experience under the old dispensation and it does appear to us that there is nothing new about this so called new dispensation because it looks like old habits die hard and we are seeing the same resuscitation of the old bad habits. –[HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – I believe that all Hon. Members would like your Office to convey our serious concerns and our grave misgivings about this state of affairs. That is my matter of privilege Mr. Speaker.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order! I think this is the first time when we have not had Ministers on Wednesday’s Question Time. Hon. Gonese is correct and one would have thought that the Hon. Ministers would have been dismissed in time to attend Parliament as demanded of by the Constitution, Section 107. I will accordingly convey the message to His Excellency, the President and hope that we shall not have a similar occurrence in future.
HON. MLISWA: It is not everyday Hon. Speaker that I am always hard hitting. I thought I would wish you Happy Valentine’s and wish all Members of Parliament Happy Valentine’s. That is all I wanted.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, thank you for your compliments.
I was surprised that the House did not appreciate in full the complimentary message from Hon. Mliswa.
Hon. Zindi having stood up.
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have not finished Hon. Zindi, you do not say okay to the Chair.
HON. ZINDI: Oh, I withdraw Hon. Speaker especially on a
Valentine Day. Also, Valentine Day to all the Hon. male members. I thank you – [HON. MEMBERS: Aaah!] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: You can now say your point of privilege and you are the last one before we map out the way forward.
HON. ZINDI: Thank you Hon. Speaker. I have already said it. I just wanted to compliment in response to Hon. Mliswa’s – happy Valentine to female Members of Parliament.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, in view of the absence of Cabinet Ministers, I rule that we move to Order Number 1 until such time that we have the Hon. Ministers in place.
MOTION
FUNDING FOR STUDENTS ON BILATERAL SCHOLARSHIPS IN
ALGERIA, RUSSIA AND CYPRUS
HON. MAJOME: I move the motion standing in my name that this House:
DEEPLY CONCERNED by the failure of Government to
timeously disburse funding for the 460 students on Bilateral Scholarship in Algeria as well as for other students in Russia and Cyprus;
ALSO CONCERNED that the former Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development, after making an undertaking to pay $3000.00 per student per year to respective universities, had failed to do so with only 25% having been paid in
2015;
DISCONCERTED that the students are currently starving and living in destitution since their semester break starting from 19th December 2017;
WORRIED that the students have no means of returning back home and some were arrested after engaging in demonstrations against their poor living conditions;
DISSAPPOINTED by the lack of response by the relevant
Government departments;
NOW, THEREFORE, resolves that;
- The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development in liaison with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and other relevant Government departments disburse funds for the stranded students as a matter of urgency;
- The Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development report to the House how his Ministry intends to rescue the stranded students;
c)The Portfolio Committee on Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development urgently inquire into the status and living conditions of Zimbabwe students on bilateral scholarships in Algeria, Russia, Cyprus and other destinations and report its findings to the House.
HON. SARUWAKA: I second.
HON. MAJOME: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir for finally
according me this opportunity to debate this motion that is urgent and that I had been hoping to debate since the 18th of December 2017. I am indeed grateful.
I would like to submit calls upon us all Hon. Members to show our patriotism in a very practical way. If there is any Zimbabwean citizen who is outside the country and who is in distress because of the failure of our own Government to meet their obligation even though we know that the Government is hamstrung by difficulties; if there is such a situation, this august House must move swiftly and encourage the Executive to do everything that it can in order to make sure that suffering is relieved. This is all the more because if such citizens – some of them are young people, while they might be over 18 but they are virtually children. These are young children who have left their homes here in Zimbabwe to go and study abroad. If they find themselves stranded outside the country because of a broken promise, this House must rise together with a clarion call.
As the motion indicates, it has come out in the public domain particularly even in our newspaper reports that there are Zimbabwean students who were accorded the benefits of the Government’s scholarship programmes to study outside the country – particularly in this case, in Algeria. In terms of these scholarships, I understand that the Government of Algeria is the one that meets their tuition fees and so on.
Our own Government, in correct recognition of the fact that a lot of
these children or students are from disadvantaged backgrounds or at least it is my hope that the selection process takes account of that but ostensibly, these children are from disadvantaged backgrounds and their families are unable to meet the full costs of their upkeep there. The Executive rightly decided to accord them payments for stipends and to disburse stipends to them which I understand will be $3 000 every year for upkeep. However, it turns out that no such money has been disbursed since 2015.
What I also understand is that there are 460 students as of
December 2017. The scholarship is called the Zimbabwe-Algeria Bilateral Scholarship Programme. Since 2015, none of this $3 000 per year has been disbursed. At the beginning of the year at the start of another semester, 60 more students were destined to join them. I move this motion because I found myself receiving an email in my inbox from female students who were pleading – actually, they sent a heart rending cry for help. I do not know where these students got my email address from. They are appealing for help so that disbursements can be made to them. The reports concerning this issue first appeared in the ‘NewsDay’ on the 11th of December 2017 and also in the ‘Daily News’ on the 12th of December 2017. The email had been sent on the 23rd of November but I was unable to act earlier.
I would like to quote some very heart rending passages from that email. There is this particular student who requested anonymity because she feared victimisation. She indicated that, “it is now two years without receiving stipends from Government and I quote,
“For the academic year 2016-2017, we never received a single cent. For the current academic year that is 2017, we have not received anything. We last received our stipends for the academic year 2015-2016 and only a quarter of it was paid.”
She went on to say – I hope Hon. Members pay attention to this. This is a child of Zimbabwe, a young woman who is writing this from far across there in the north of Africa.
She says, “we are suffering and now known as beggars. Our academic performance has gone bad. Our permits were written ‘strictly education’ and working is very illegal. We cannot work. Our
Zimbabwean boys try to work in the construction industry sites where they receive $4 per day after working for a good nine hours. Sometimes they are arrested and mistaken as illegal immigrants.”
During the summer school holidays, the school facilities were closed and they are now in boarding houses. They must cook on their own and fend for themselves but because of that, they ended up using the little money they had. I quote, “we ended up selling our cell phones and laptops for food. Some borrowed money from other students from Nigeria, Angola and so on who had received their stipends thinking that the Government would give us ours but they have not. Now, these foreign students are taking everything we have – that is students from other African countries because we cannot pay them back. Some are promising to sue us’. We were doing all this because we had no money to buy food or even soap.”
They are saying a lot of them are poor and are from poor backgrounds. She went on to say that, “Hon. Member, we want your help if possible – whether you can raise our issue in Parliament.” I hope Hon. Members of this august House are paying attention. This was a plea from a young woman. The email address was called Zimbabwe female students in Algeria.
She says, “we want your help if possible whether you raise this issue in Parliament or file the case before the courts.” I preferred to bring it to this august House. She went on to say that, “we really need your help our case needs urgency, we are suffering.” They are daughters of Zimbabwe.
She indicated – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, can you please lower your voices so that we can follow the debate.
HON. MAJOME: She also indicated that previously, this scholarship arrangement was under the former Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Prof. Jonathan Moyo and she says, “the Minister has been ignoring us and threatening us. We did not have anyone to cry to.”
Now, the scholarship was moved to the newly created Ministry of
Presidential Scholarships under Minister Mushohwe,” and as of
December last year, they had a two week semester break and she said,
“we do not know what we will put in our mouths. We cannot go for prostitution, we need our money. May you help us. The abandoned students in Algeria.”
Mr. Speaker Sir, if girl children raise a plea like this, it is something that calls for concern. We cannot be a nation that risks its young women selling their bodies in countries across the world because we are not looking after them. We are not sending to them just basic means of survival.
The prayer of this motion is really very simple, that in particular the relevant Ministry, that is the Ministry of Scholarship together with that of the Ministry of Higher Education and the Hon. Minister of Foreign Affairs who was the primary voice of the new dispensation when he announced it on television, in those very unusual circumstances that happened; the plea is that they sit together and do everything they can to ensure that they disburse money to these students.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I have received a lot of communication on the internet and Twitter as well as on Face book from Zimbabweans who are debating this very sad state of affairs. However, I forgot to say that when this issue came out in the Daily News and in the News Day, as I indicated, these students had taken the unusual step of conducting a demonstration outside the Zimbabwean Embassy offices in Algeria. The demonstration was broken up by the police in Algeria and some of the students were injured. It is said that there is one particular female student, who because of the stress involved, succumbed to psychological stress and illness.
In the debate in the media, the general sentiment is that there is sympathy for these children who are in Algeria. It turns out on the media that there are possibly Zimbabwean students who are also on scholarships in Cyprus and Russia experiencing the same fate. It appears that possibly there could be other students who are beneficiaries of these scholarships in South Africa or elsewhere who might also not have received their stipends. I want to believe that this nation; it is said in the Bible that whatever you do to the littlest of these - yes, I know they are over 18 years but they are still children - you do it unto Jesus
Christ. A nation is judged by what it does to the least of its individuals.
We cannot be so heartless to send our children outside and abandon
them there, leave them exposed to prostitution and working as illegal immigrants.
In December, these students were afraid that they were leaving their residences. In the north of Africa, the climate in Algeria is temperate climate and it was said to be experiencing one of the harshest winters. It snows and these young people, because they had not received any money, did not have adequate warm clothing.
I also received communication in my inbox on Twitter from another student who had been in Algeria, who also happens to come from Harare West Constituency. He confirmed that indeed that was the state of affairs. He was fortunate to have finished and graduated. He said that when the students demonstrated at the Embassy, they took a sitin at the Embassy in Algiers and the student attaché unleashed terror upon students. Many suffered severely from Algerian police brutality under the command and watchful eye of the attaché who is called Caleb Mharapara.
Mr. Speaker Sir, we just need to do something very simple. Of all the things that our Government is spending money on, surely money can be spared to send relief to these young people. Of course, there are issues around foreign currency shortages but an issue like this deserves urgent priority.
Mr. Speaker Sir, while I say this, I must also bring to the attention of the House the concerns that some members of the public were debating, which I think Hon. Members must also discuss. Let us help these children because it is urgent. As a nation, we have State universities and other universities that are around. Why not spend the money that we have in developing our local universities and equipping them fully so that all Zimbabwean students, whether they come from under privileged backgrounds or wealthy backgrounds, are able to go to our own universities and study without the need for sums like these. An amount of US$3 000 per year can do a world of wonders, for example at Midlands State University or at the University of Zimbabwe – [HON.
MEMBERS: Hear, hear.]- It will do a lot of good.
It is helpful to learn from other jurisdictions but when we are a country that is so poor like this, we can maximize the use of our resources, plough and invest in our universities. In the meantime, because we have chosen to send these young men and women abroad, let us do the right thing. Let us meet our promises to them, let us not break our promise to them. If we are going to send them, let us make sure that we have the money to sustain them.
Mr. Speaker, I want to raise concern that I hope this House does a comprehensive job because there are reports of Zimbabwean students elsewhere. It is extremely painful and embarrassing to be an African nation whose own children survive on the charity of donations from students of other African nation countries. We have become a laughing stock even on the African continent as capable as we are. We must not allow this to happen.
Can we move swiftly and in this case, the hope is that the Portfolio Committee on Higher Education conducts possibly a comprehensive inquiry so that in case we have other Zimbabwean students, not this Algerian case but who are even in other countries, to find out what is the status of the welfare of the young women and men that we have sent abroad on scholarships, to find out their conditions of living and to find out ways of rescuing them if they need rescuing.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I want to plead with the Hon. Members of this august House to whole heartedly support this motion and do everything that we can to ensure that as a matter of urgency, there are urgent steps to ensure that those who are responsible for disbursing money find it and send it to these students so that they can be rescued and that their future stipends are guaranteed to avoid these sufferings. They should also find out what can be done in terms of rehabilitation, particularly the ones who have suffered stress and are now mentally ill. Even, particularly for the vulnerable young women, I am sure the one who wrote this email to me does not want to go into prostitution like the other ones but I think there is a reason why she said it. We need to find out if we can rescue them from that.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I will close by asking our Government, if we are in a new dispensation indeed, to do everything possible and to arrest the situation in higher education. I understand that the Government said it is going to give loans to students; well - that may be so but a lot of us in this House benefited from Government grants including myself. For my first degree at the University of Zimbabwe, I benefited from a grant and a loan, so that is the way we should go. We should invest in our students. Giving out loans only in an environment like this might also be difficult.
However, whatever the case might be, my plea is that, may this august House move to resolve for a comprehensive solution that stops the suffering of these children. Investigations on the state of affairs of other children should be carried out and also to look into our higher and tertiary education to ensure that we protect our young people and invest in them as the Constitution provides, but also do so in a sustainable way.
I thank you.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order! There is a vehicle whose registration number is ABI 9698, a Nissan Amada, could the owner please go out and park the vehicle properly.
HON. SARUWAKA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. Let me thank
the mover of the motion for coming up with such an important matter for consideration in this House. The motion is as a result of a plea from distressed citizens who are in Algeria and other countries outside our borders. They went there with high hopes of earning an education and come back to improve this country. Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker Sir, these students got a raw deal from their own Government. This is a plea, and the students are crying out loudly through this august House, which is the institution which is closely linked with the welfare of our people so that the message can get to our Government, the Executive, that we have students who need attention so that we do not embarrass ourselves as a nation.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I am particularly worried that we are talking of students in Algeria, Russia and Cyprus - these countries are not Englishspeaking. Communication is very important when one is in distress. It is better to be poor and desperate in your own country than to do the same in a foreign country because it becomes very difficult to find your way out to get help.
Mr. Speaker Sir, as a result of the neglect by this Government of the students in these foreign countries, we have exposed our own citizens to the vice of prostitution as alluded to by the former speaker, the mover of this motion. Our citizens are now begging in foreign countries, they have been reduced to beggars in order to survive, others have turned to prostitution and young men have been turned to slavery as they are doing menial jobs in order to earn a living. Instead of going to the foreign countries for the reason of learning, we have exposed them to slavery.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I remember last year that we debated in this House concerning young ladies who went to Kuwait with the hope of landing good jobs and earn money to support their families back home but what then happened was that; they were treated as slaves. The difference with the students I am talking about is that they went to foreign countries with the hope of getting an education and this was facilitated by our own Government. So as a Government, we must not facilitate the enslavement of our own people. By taking our students to foreign countries and fail to take care of their accommodation and food requirements, we are simply letting them to the wolves and it is very unfair and irresponsible of our Government to allow that to happen.
Mr. Speaker Sir, on these bilateral agreements, I think it is very important that when there is an offer which we cannot meet in terms of our side of the bargain, it is better not to take it up than to say we have good relations with Algeria or Russia. Those countries play their part and we then fail to contribute on our side of the bargain and end up embarrassing ourselves as a country and also putting our own citizens at risk.
It is very sad, as a nation, we must realise that every citizen who is outside our border is our ambassador. Every Zimbabwean who is outside the country should be lifting our Zimbabwean flag very high.
We should be seen as a country which can take care of its own citizens. How then are we going to have our students in foreign countries act as our ambassadors when they are starving in those countries? They are now known for begging, is that the picture we want other African countries to see on us, are we prostitutes? Is that the message we want to send outside there? What choice are we giving our students if we do not support them with the funds when they go out? So, Mr. Speaker Sir, I just want to thank the mover of the motion for raising this very pertinent motion to the attention of yourselves and our Government that it is very important that, as a responsible Government, we make sure that we support these students, especially those who managed to write to us.
It would be very sad that they have taken all the trouble to inform your office and nothing happens. We must be seen as a responsive Parliament and as a responsive Government. Mr. Speaker Sir, before I sit down, I just want to thank the mover of the motion for raising this very critical issue. I hope our Government will at least show the difference between what was happening under Robert Mugabe and what can now happen under the new dispensation. Thank you.
THE HON. SPEAKER: The Chief whips have consulted each other and I believe they have done some round robin consultation with yourselves and they have indicated that we can now go back to question time with the current crop of Ministers who are here. If that is the consensus of the House, we proceed with Questions Without Notice.
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): I move that the debate do now adjourn.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 15th February, 2018.
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Thank you Mr.
Speaker Sir. I move that we revert to question time and that you extend with 10 minutes. I so submit. Thank you.
Motion put and agreed to.
ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE
HON. KARORO: Thank you and good afternoon Mr. Speaker.
My question is directed to the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education. In the absence of the Minister, I will redirect my question to the Leader of the House. Mr. Speaker, the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education is now teaching 16 languages in the new curriculum. I would like to understand from the Hon. Minister why the
Chikunda language was excluded from the new curriculum? Thank you.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. Hon. Members, please be guided by the Constitution. This is not a place to advocate for some other languages that are not within the Constitution in terms of Article 6 of our Constitution. You might in future, Hon. Member, ask for some amendments to the Constitution.
HON. J. TSHUMA: Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. My question was supposed to be directed to the Minister of Higher and
Tertiary Education - in his absence, may I redirect it to the Leader of the House. What is Government policy to the issue of administrators who are not following Government policy? For example, there are tertiary institutions that have clear policy that if students do not have money to pay for their fees, they should not be sent home, instead, they can be allowed to write their exams and their certificates can be withheld until they make good their payments. Right now, there are a lot of tertiary colleges that are forcing students to defer from writing their final year exams this year until next year, which is against Government policy. What is Government policy against such administrators who abuse Government policy? I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Thank you very
much Mr. Speaker. I would like to thank the Hon. Member for the question that he kind of answered. He clearly spelt out the Government policy that no student should be barred from writing an exam. All administrators who are not doing that will be violating Government policy. I believe that he has specific issues with specific colleges, perhaps for his benefit, if he can put that question in writing, detailing the colleges that are doing that for the attention of the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, it can be looked into and resolved. I thank you.
HON. J. TSHUMA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I want to thank the Leader of the House ...
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. I have not recognised you – [HON. ZWIZWAI: Gara pasi iwe, sit down.] – Hon. Zwizwai. There is no supplementary question because the Hon. Leader of the House has been comprehensive in his response. Hon. Tshuma should put the question in writing with specific colleges that are violating Government policy.
HON. CHAKONA: My question was supposed to be directed to the Minister of Finance, in his absence, I am directing it to the leader of the House. What is Government policy with regards to members of the public or anybody who goes to the bank and deposits US dollars. When they want to withdraw the same, they are not permitted to do that or they are limited to have access to their money which they would have deposited. I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Thank you very much Hon. Chakona for the question. Mr. Speaker, my understanding is that the policy the Reserve Bank put in place is that if you deposit US dollars, you are allowed to withdraw the US dollars. Should there be an institution that is not following that, perhaps you need to take that up with the Minister of Finance in writing or the Reserve Bank. The policy is that where you deposit US dollars, you are allowed to withdraw, but where RTGs money has been deposited, that is where the bank limits are applicable. I thank you.
*HON. ZWIZWAI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My supplementary question is that the Governor of the Reserve Bank, Dr.
Mangudya promised the country that ....
THE HON. SPEAKER: Who is speaking at the back there? Why is the translation so loud? [The Serjeant-at-Arms approached the Chair.] Sorry for the interruption, please proceed.
*HON. ZWIZWAI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. The Governor of the Reserve Bank, Dr. Mangudya promised the country that the value of the US dollar and the bond note is 1:1. This means that they are the same. The Government used a lot of money in advertising, advocating for the 1:1, the rate of the US dollar to the bond note. He also promised the country, especially President Mugabe that if that rate of 1:1 is not put into effect, he is going to resign as the Governor. We want to know where he stands in Cabinet, in terms of his resignation because as we stand the rate is no longer 1:1. In addition, the jingles that used to be played are no longer playing on TV or radio for the people to be assured. We want to know where you stand as Cabinet to restore the legacy of 1:1 and to put into effect his desire to resign if it does not work. I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): I want to thank the Hon. Member for that question which is a supplementary to Hon. Chakona. Hon. Chakona asked about if I take my US dollars and deposit into my account; what does the law say and the Hon. Member asked about someone who said a statement about tendering a resignation, now it is not the same question Hon. Chakona has asked. Hon. Chakona is talking about withdrawing the money that he has deposited and he is asking about the statement on what the Governor said and it is not Government policy, whatever he said. So what he is asking is now different from the first question.
So, this is not a supplementary question which has been asked by Hon. Chakona but if he wants to know how our funds are going, he can put it in writing so that we would answer him accurately. Then we will go and ask the question on the one he said was going to resign and investigate, then Hon. Chinamasa will come back with the answer.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order! I think the supplementary question does arise because when you do RTGs you expect the value of both denominations to be equal, which is not the case. I think that is the nature of the question.
*HON. ZIYAMBI: Thank you Mr. Speaker. We should know that the value between the three currencies; the bond, RTGs and US dollar, the values are the same but the Reserve Bank Governor has said if your money has been deposited into the account as RTGs, please use it as RTGs but if it was deposited as cash into your account, you should withdraw it as cash. The problem we are facing is that because of the demand of cash, the money which was put as cash and then as RTGs, the value was different so there was no balance. We now have a dispensation that if somebody has deposited cash, you can withdraw that amount as cash. That is why I responded that he is talking about somebody who has gone to the bank and deposited cash, in that case if the money should be withdrawn as RTGs, there is going to be an anomaly because it was going to be RTGs versus cash. That is why the people who have deposited their monies as cash can withdraw that money.
HON. MLISWA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. The Minister must be very clear and understanding that when the bond notes started, there were people who had US dollars in their accounts. They were then given bond notes, they did not say no, but when they are asked for US dollars, they cannot because they banked that US dollar initially which he converted into bond notes. So how does he reconcile the two? There is no way that you put a US dollar today, you get bond notes and when you ask for US dollar, you are not given US dollar. It is not possible and you must deal with the facts on the ground and admit that the economy is not pumping; we do not have the US dollars. This is why we need the Minister of Finance and Economic Development who is responsible for that to answer. I was going to say that there is no point for us to have
Question Time when the responsible Minister is not here with the facts.
It is a waste of time for us to continue like this. The Minister of Finance and Economic Development must come and respond to this question himself otherwise we are wasting time.
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Thank you Mr.
Speaker Sir. I would like to thank Hon. Mliswa for his contribution and his suggestion that perhaps the Minister of Finance should come and attend to issues of money – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.]
–
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order! In life, there is a virtue of humility and if the Hon. Leader of the House accepts that he cannot answer the question fully and he will refer it to the Minister concerned, I think that must be accepted.
Hon. Munengami having wanted to raise a point of order.
THE HON. SPEAKER: No point of order shall arise.
HON. MUNENGAMI: Not concerning this. Thank you Hon.
Speaker, now that we have got other questions that we want to ask because he is here as the Leader of the House, is he again going to refer those questions to the relevant Ministers. We need to ask questions and we need to know whether we will get answers, so what are we going to do now? If he is not able to answer those questions, then we might as well defer like what Hon. Mliswa has just said because what is the point of us asking questions when he does not know.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order! Hon. Munengami, you did not appreciate fully what Hon. Mliswa said. Secondly, you cannot be prescriptive as to what the Hon. Leader of Government Business is going to say. Why do you not allow him to answer the questions and where he is able to do so, he will do so. – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – Order, order! I will not accept a quid pro quo.
*HON. ZWIZWAI: Thank you Hon. Speaker. We have a
financial problem in the country and all people are interested in knowing how this could be corrected. People would like the Minister of Finance and Economic Development to come and respond to these questions and also the Reserve Bank Governor, Mr. Mangudya also promised us that if things do not go his way, he is going to quit his job. We are encouraging Ministers to research on questions being asked. This is reflecting a bad picture because we have students in the Speakers Gallery who will look down upon our Ministers as people who are incapable because they cannot answer particular questions.
THE HON. SPEAKER: The last part of your question must be withdrawn because it is a blanket statement.
HON. ZWIZWAI: I withdraw Mr. Speaker.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Thank you.
*HON. ZINDI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My policy question is a follow up on the question regarding the Leader of the House who used to respond to questions regarding various issues in the Government. Why do we not say that the Leader of the House should not respond to questions regarding the various ministries? When the particular Minister is not in the House, we should leave out the questions.
THE HON. SPEAKER: According to the parliamentary systems, the Leader of Government business is there and can answer. Where he is unable to answer, he will indicate accordingly. So your suggestion is not accepted.
HON. MAVHENYENGWA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. My
question is directed to the Minister of Lands, Agriculture and Rural
Resettlement. I want to thank Government on Command Livestock Programme but I want to know…
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order. Please go to the question.
HON. MAVHENYENGWA: Thank you. I want to know
whether goats, sheep and other small livestock are included in the programme and when is it going to spread to other regions of the country like Masvingo Province which is generally an arid region which is suitable for livestock production?
THE MINISTER OF LANDS, AGRICULTURE AND RURAL
RESETTLEMENT (HON. RTD. AIR CHIEF MARSHALL SHIRI):
I thank the Hon. Member for asking the question. Yes, small ruminants such as goats and sheep are going to be part of Command Livestock even poultry, both …
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Minister, you address the Chair.
HON. RTD. AIR CHIEF MARSHALL SHIRI: Even poultry both …
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order. Hon. Minister, you address the Chair.
HON. RTD. AIR CHIEF MARSHALL SHIRI: My apologies
Mr. Speaker Sir.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Thank you.
HON. RTD. AIR CHIEF MARSHALL SHIRI: Allow me to
respond to the Hon. Member. Yes; goats, sheep and all other small ruminants are going to be part of Command Livestock. The programme is going to be launched in the provinces very soon. If everything goes per plan, we should be launching the programme in Matabeleland South on Friday and possibly Matabeleland North on Saturday. From there, we shall be going to other provinces. I thank you.
HON. MHLANGA: My supplementary question to Hon. Shiri is whether the Ministry is considering extending the policy on Command Agriculture, be it cropping or livestock to small scale farmers or communal farmers seeing that if well managed, six sectors of land can be viable.
HON. RTD. AIR CHIEF MARSHALL SHIRI: Command
Agriculture encompasses all farmers, big and small. The fact that Presidential Input Scheme focuses specifically at the small scale farmers such as the communal and A1 farmers does not preclude the same category of farmers from being contracted under Command Agriculture.
*HON. ZWIZWAI: Hon. Minister, what is Government policy regarding us as MDC – in the past Government led by Comrade Mugabe, members of the MDC and their supporters were not allowed to participate in Government programmes such as this Command
Agriculture. Our request is that you announce to the nation the plans that you have as a new dispensation since we all participated in bringing down the criminal elements which were surrounding His Excellency
Comrade Mugabe until he resigned. What plans do you have so that non ZANU PF members benefit, unlike in the past regime where we were discriminated.
*THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. MARUMAHOKO):
Hon. Zwizwai, may we please tell the truth as it is. The past Government did not deny any bona fide citizen of Zimbabwe to enjoy the fruits that were being disbursed by the Government in any programme. Nobody was discriminated – [HON. MEMBERS:
Inaudible interjections.] –
Order, I can give an example of Welshman Ncube. He has got a farm and a lot of others too – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – - [HON. ZWIZWAI: Isu tiri mavictims, regai titaure on our behalf. Give us assurance.]
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order, order Hon. Zwizwai.
Order please, order!
*HON. RTD. AIR CHIEF MARSHALL SHIRI: Thank you for
allowing me to answer the question raised by the Hon. member regarding discrimination of non-ZANU PF members. In the first place, I am not aware of the fact that some people were discriminated against in participating in programmes in the past but we are now looking at the new dispensation. When we address farmers, we are going to talk to people who are bona fide farmers, whether they are communal farmers, A1 or A2. All we want to know is the evidence that one is a bona fide farmer. We are not going to discriminate along partisan lines. Everybody should participate in the development of the country. I have been approached by many people, including people from various political parties who also want to benefit from the land reform programme. I have highlighted to them that they should submit their applications because there is a land audit which is going on. When there is need for them to benefit, they will definitely benefit. May I please pinpoint that if Hon. Zwizwai also wants to benefit, we will take him as an example of the non-partisanship approach of the Government towards its programmes
HON. CHINANZVAVANA: My question still goes to the Leader of Government business in the absence of the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education. What does Government policy say on the fate of a better part of our population, those who did not manage to get full qualification on their Ordinary level and Advanced level examinations considering that upon the implementation of the new curriculum, they cannot proceed as they are expected to get a 30% mark of continuous assessment in the classroom. Do we all stop going to school even as adult learners? Thank you.
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Thank you Hon.
Speaker. I would like to thank the Hon. Member for the question which is in two parts; one relating to those that wrote their Ordinary levels before the coming in of the new curricular and the position now that we have the new curricular. As a way forward, it a question that I believe is important for the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education to address and rectify, given that there is a movement of curriculum from the old to the new. So, I will take the question to the Minister with a view to rectify the situation. I thank you.
*HON. CHITURA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question is directed to the Minister of Health, Dr. Parirenyatwa. What is
Government policy regarding cervical cancer especially in women? This has become so rampant that in my constituency, in Manicaland, women are paying as much as US$800 to be attended to on the cervical cancer.
*THE MINISTER OF HEALTH AND CHILD CARE (HON. DR. PARIRENYATWA): Thank you Hon. Speaker. I thank Hon.
Chitura for this pertinent question on cervical cancer. I agree definitely that women have lots of problems regarding cervical cancer and it is one of the most prevalent types of cancers biting all the other forms. The second in line in the attack is the breast cancer and third is the prostate cancer.
However, the problem is that most of these women come late when they have already developed attacked by cervical cancer. Our advice as Ministry of Health and Child Care is that women should go for screening earlier so that they receive attention. As of now, we have introduced a programme where these women are screened for the cervical cancer. So, this is one of the methods we are using for prevention.
The Hon. Member has also talked about women being made to pay
US$800 for the treatment of cervical cancer. As Hon. Members of Parliament and Senators, let us talk about cervical cancer in our constituencies. Let us encourage women to go and be screened for cervical cancer. We are even encouraging our young girls from the ages of nine years upwards to be vaccinated against this cervical cancer. We are also encouraging abstinence from sex to the young girls because we have realised that this cervical cancer is contracted during sex. So, young women should delay in indulging into sex or if possible, they should abstain. We are also encouraging men and women to have protected sex. Most importantly, women should be screened. When women are screened for the cervical cancer, they should be screened for breast cancer as well to check if they do not have any growths in their breasts. If ever growths are found, they then go to the next stage of screening which is ultrasound so that it can be examined and treated before developing to full blown cancer.
*HON. CHITURA: We have Dr. Kitkat in Mutare who is demanding US$800. It is happening in the Government institution especially for the removal of the womb for those women who have the cervical cancer.
*HON. DR. PARIRENYATWA: This is a specific question. May you please put it in writing so that we give you an appropriate answer.
*THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Hon. Chitura, I hope you
have heard what the Minister has said. May you please put that in writing so that a full investigation is done and an appropriate response is given.
HON. NDUNA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. Would it not be prudent to use part of the National Health Fund towards alleviating the plight of the affected men and women in terms of cancer treatment? Would it not be a prudent exercise to utilise part of the National Health Fund that you have started accumulating, to treat and also to mitigate in the treatment of those people that are affected by the scourge and the proliferation of the cancer.
HON. DR. PARIRENYATWA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. Let
me thank Hon. Nduna for that supplementary question. It is true that we now have a Healthy Levy Fund which has accumulated to the tune of about 22 million and we have used 16 million of that. We have recognised that cancer drugs are very expensive..
HON. MLISWA: On a point of privilege! Mr. Speaker, you can see Members of Parliament walking out and they are all from ZANU PF.
Now, when you lose the primary elections, you know why you lost. Even when the television broadcaster is here, your constituents cannot even see you, and you do not ask questions. What are they doing here? This is a waste of tax payers’ money. His Excellency is clear about you working hard and you are busy going out to hotels, what for? We cannot be seen wasting tax payers’ money at this rate. I think it is important
that elections are held quickly so that you find yourself back in the farms rather than wasting people’s money. This is unacceptable Mr. Speaker –
[HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order please. Thank you Hon.
Mliswa. Would the Chief Whip make sure that he restricts the movement of Members at the back there.
HON. DR. PARIRENYATWA: Mr. Speaker, we have said that because cancer drugs are so expensive, we have decided to take part of the money of the Health Levy Fund account to buy some of the expensive cancer drugs. So, we think it will go a long way towards alleviating the treatment of cancer because it is a very expensive drug.
Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
*HON. ZINDI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. Regarding the question which has been asked by Hon. Chitura on Dr. Kitkat, let me explain further. Hon. Dr. Parirenyatwa, are you aware that Dr Kit Cart has his own private surgery and he also works for the Government hospital at Mutare Provincial Hospital. As a result, he refers some of these patients to his private hospital and this is where he makes these patients pay cash in United States Dollars (US$). He does not want any swipe or bond notes, he wants the hard US$ currency. So, what should we do with this kind of relationship where someone with a private surgery is also allowed to attend patients at Government hospitals? How are you managing it as a Minister of Health and Child Care?
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Hon. Zindi, that seems to be an observation of a particular hospital – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] - I suggest that you put it in writing so that the Minister gets a chance of investigating and then comes back to you. It needs some investigations before he can come back to you.
HON. MATANGIRA: On a point of order Mr. Speaker Sir. My point of order is the pertinence of what Hon. Zindi has said. It is not only happening in Mutare, it is happening countrywide. People come to the general hospital and they charge people – I think the Ministry has to make an investigation countrywide and help the nation.
HON. MAJOME: Thank you Hon. Speaker. My supplementary question is; has the Government found out why Zimbabwe has high and astonishing rates of cervical cancer? Does it know what is causing Zimbabwean women in particular, to be amongst the highest prevalent rates of cervical cancer? What is it that is happening to Zimbabwean women that is causing them that so that we do not only deal with the incidence of it but intervene to find out what it is that is predisposing them more than others to cervical cancer?
HON. DR. PARIRENYATWA: Thank you very much Mr.
Speaker Sir. Let me thank Hon. Majome for that pertinent question. In terms of the region, Zimbabwe has one of the highest cervical cancer rates, but it is also because we have done a survey here in the country and some countries have not done an appropriate survey. However, the most common cause is the human papilloma virus (HPV). One of the causes is also that we have the highest rates of HIV in the country and we are finding that women who are HIV positive are more prone to acquire the cancer of the cervix.
Women are living longer because of treatment and the risk becomes higher of acquiring cancer of the cervix. This is very related to HIV in the country. Of course, there are other reasons but HIV was found to be one of the major causes of the high prevalence in this country.
HON. DR. MASHAKADA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My
question is directed to the Minister of Environment, Water and Climate Change. Hon. Minister, what is Government’s Environmental Impact Assessment Policy regarding companies that are situated or sited in residential areas causing health hazards to communities that live near those industries or companies?
HON. NDUNA: Sorry Mr. Speaker Sir. I have a point of order before the question is answered.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Nduna. Just in the middle, before I even recognise the Minister, you stand up again?
HON. NDUNA: Sorry Mr. Speaker, I just want to guide the House so that we become procedural in terms of the time limits of questions with notice. I am just trying to make sure that we stay in the confines of our procedure because the time has lapsed. I want to call for extension of time for questions without notice Mr. Speaker.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Who said it was time over? I
am here, I will tell when it is time over, it is not for you to tell me – [Laughter.] –
THE MINISTER OF ENVIRONMENT, WATER AND
CLIMATE (HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI): Thank you Mr.
Speaker Sir. I want to thank Hon. Mashakada for the very important question which he has posed regarding some companies that are situated in residential areas without proper Environmental Impact Assessment Programmes. Our position is very clear, that any company that wants to establish business in Zimbabwe must first apply for an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) permit.
Unfortunately, the question answers itself because these companies will not have respected the laws of Zimbabwe. So, in itself it is very wrong and I know the company that he may be referring to here in Harare, which has caused a lot of suffering within residential areas. We intervened because already, there were a lot of misunderstandings where people were interpreting a situation where a company did not respect our laws. This is an Indian company I presume, and we brought them to book. Apparently, when the issue was brought to my attention, already the residents of Harare had also raised a flag. We have now demanded that they process the Environmental Impact Assessment but with all stakeholders involved. I want to end by saying that we are seized with the matter and I want warn any other company that would want to do business to follow the procedures and regulations of this country. I thank you.
HON. MLISWA: Thank Mr. Speaker. Hon. Minister, environment, even in the Constitution, is key, you have the power to stop anything from happening if it harms the people from an environmental point of view. There are mining companies that are mining without the EIA, what are you doing as a Ministry to stop this, especially Chinese mines because your intervention is critical to protecting the environment and human life.
HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I
want to appreciate the question asked by Hon. Mliswa regarding the companies that he is talking about. I do not have data as to which company he is referring to. I would want to encourage him if he is aware of such companies to report to us and we will not hesitate to move in and put corrective measures. I thank you.
HON. MLISWA: Mr. Speaker, I also speak as the Chairperson of Mines and Energy Committee. There are many issues that are coming through where clearly mining operations seem to be taking precedence over the environment. I think it will be important for the Minister to respond whether there is a relationship with the Ministry of Mines or any other Ministry that needs an EIA before they do anything, because it is about the ministries working together but we have fights already within the two ministries where EMA is saying, a mining activity is taking place without Mines coming through to us. Is she aware of the fights between EMA and the Ministry that is also awarding licences to people to mine?
HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I
have already indicated that if there are such challenges existing between our won agencies, EMA specifically and the Ministry of Mines, I want to encourage the Hon. Member to bring those cases before my Ministry so that if need be, we can organise meetings with the Hon. Minister of Mines so that we agree on a way forward in redressing the issue.
HON. MARIDADI: Mr. Speaker Sir, this is a very hot topic. I
introduced the motion yesterday, in which I presented here in Parliament and we will be expecting the Hon. Minister to give a response. One such case which comes to mind when Hon. Mliswa speaks is the issue of the Borrowdale Vlei which Hon. Minister, you had an out of court settlement with One Ken Sharpe where you gave him the right to develop that area which is essentially the head wetland in this country. When you develop that area, you compromised all the underground water of the City of Harare. Minister you are well aware of that situation, can you please give us a response in particular to the Ken Sharpe issue at Borrowdale. Thank you.
HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI: Mr. Speaker Sir, that
question is already on the Order Paper. I was going to shed more light on the issue. If I can be allowed to present later.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Thank you Hon. Minister. If it is on the Order Paper, leave it until we get there.
*HON. CHIKOMBA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister of Lands, Hon. Shiri. We want to thank the Government and it has really helped us. In Gokwe, our industry is cotton growing and people are not yet well vested in cotton farming. Can you give us two more years so that people can be capacitated to continue growing cotton?
* THE MINISTER OF LANDS, AGRICULTURE AND
RURAL RESETTLEMENT (HON. RTD. AIR CHIEF
MARSHALL SHIRI): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I want to answer
Hon. Member Chikomba. The issue of cotton farming, like what he is saying, we are going to look into it and also engage the financiers that is Government, the Treasury to see whether we can go on. For now, we are dealing with three years, until we have response from Treasury whether they can give us more years.
HON. MANDIPAKA: I am directing my question to Hon. Ziyambi Ziyambi. Hon. Minister, worried about the reputation of the Zimbabwe Republic Police Service ...
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order, order. In the absence
of which Minister? Is it directed to him and not to do with any other Ministry?
HON. MANDIPAKA: It is directed to the Leader of the House
Mr. Speaker. Hon. Minister, worried about the reputation of the
Zimbabwe Republic Police Service, can you outline before this Honourable House the policy position that Government has adopted or will adopt so that members of the public continue to have confidence in the Zimbabwe Republic Police, especially in this new dispensation. I thank you.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: I thought that was supposed
to be directed to the Minister of Home Affairs. It is exactly what I was asking you to do.
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): I would like to
thank you Mr. Speaker and thank the Hon. Member for the question that he asked which is very important. As you may be aware, we now have a new Commissioner General of police. One of his functions is to ensure that the integrity of the force and starters that they enjoyed in past is restored. It is our hope that the Commissioner will do his duties accordingly. I thank you.
HON. P. D. SIBANDA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. The Hon. Minister has spoken about the new Commissioner General being charged with the responsibility to restore credibility and integrity to the organisation. It is known that the current Commissioner General of police is an old horse within the same organisation such that the level of his being tainted with whatever has been going on in the organisation is high. Again, looking at the fact that his appointment seems to be contrary to the new dispensation in terms of age limit for employment in the Public Service, how does the Hon. Minister envisage a scenario where that kind of person will turn around and improve the integrity of the organisation. I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Thank you Mr.
Speaker Sir. I want to thank the Hon. Member for the question.
However, the Hon. Member is casting aspersions on the character of the Commissioner General without any evidence – which, with all due respect, I believe it is not necessary. He is a new man on the job. He has been tasked to do a job and casting aspersions on his character without any substantive evidence is wrong. I thank you.
HON. P. D SIBANDA: Hon. Speaker, the most important aspect
of the question is that it is a fact that the new Commissioner General has been in police force, I think from the early eighties up to now. He has been in the police service, all the activities that have been taking place in the police force, he has been a senior member in the position of Deputy Commissioner General. Therefore, that is a fact and they are not aspersions. He needs to clarify whether his association with the organisation through these years up to now can give us confidence as a nation that indeed he has what it takes to re-invent the image of the organisation. Beyond that, it is also a fact that he is a man beyond 60 years of age, that is not an aspersion, the Minister should clarify that.
HON. ZIYAMBI: Thank you Mr. Speaker for allowing me to respond to this question. The Hon. Member said “the Commissioner General is tainted” – [HON. P. D SIBANDA: Yes he is tainted.] –
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. MARUMAHOKO):
Order, order Hon. Sibanda.
Hon Munengami having stood up and said, “he is tainted, it is a fact”.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Hon. Member, may you please move out – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – Order, Hon.
Member may you please move out? Can you apologise to the Chair please?
HON. MUNENGAMI: I am sorry Hon. Chair.
HON. ZIYAMBI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. The way I responded is the Hon. Member has indicated that the Commissioner General is tainted and in the absence of what has tainted him, he is deemed to be an innocent man. The Commissioner General is a constitutional appointee, appointed by the President, contrary to what he is alleging that he is governed whatever age that he is speaking about. He is a constitutional appointee, appointed by the President after consultation with the Minister responsible for police and what I was alluding to is he is a new man on the job; he should be judged according to his own shoes that he wears – [HON. P. D. SIBANDA: That is his shoes.] –
I would not want to belabour questions about the character or things that someone has done that have not been brought either to the attention of Cabinet or to the President. I thank you.
*HON. MUPFUMI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question is directed to the Leader of the House. What is Government policy regarding the demise of the Zimbabwe dollar, we have some people who had sold their properties and had used the Zimbabwean dollar. When we entered the US dollar era and money in the banks were evaluated against the US dollars, those people got something like US$5 or $6 for that amount. Was the evaluation of the US dollar equivalent to the value of the property sold such as houses and farms?
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Thank you Mr.
Speaker. I would like to thank the Hon. Member for the question regarding the evaluation of property sold in Zimbabwean dollars. I am going to take this matter up to the higher echelons so that this question can receive the response it deserves.
*HON. MARIDADI: The question asked by Hon. Mupfumi has been asked already, I think you should rule him out, where was he?
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Hon. Maridadi, you are out of order.
Questions without Notice were interrupted by THE
TEMPORARY SPEAKER in terms of Standing Order Number 64. HON. MLILO: I move that Question Time be extended by 10 minutes.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: It was extended already, so that falls off.
CLINICAL CANCER TESTING CENTRES
- HON. MANGWENDE asked the Minister of Health and
Child Care to state the plans that the Ministry has put in place to avail clinical cancer testing centres across the country to ensure early detection of breast cancer.
THE MINISTER OF HEALTH AND CHILD CARE (HON.
- PARIRENYATWA): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I want to thank Hon. Mangwende for asking this important question about cancer testing. Government of Zimbabwe through the Non-Communicable Disease department in the Ministry of Health and Child Care has a plan to introduce breast cancer screening as public health programme. Currently only cervical cancer is being screened on as routine basis from district hospital levels upwards. Cases of breast cancer are on the increase with many public figures having been diagnosed and also many people seeking treatment when cancer has already spread. If breast cancer is detected early, it can be treated successfully through surgery but if it is detected late, treatment involves chemotherapy and radiotherapy which are very expensive for the ordinary person and prognosis is poor if diagnosed late.
We intend to screen women of reproductive age group as well as having campaigns, educating them about the disease as a way of encouraging them to get screened earlier. Screening of breast cancer first involves: Palpation of the breast by a trained health worker which is also known as clinical breast exam. If lumps are palpated/felt, the patient is referred to mammography or ultrasound-scan (USS).
Mammography machines are expensive so much that the Ministry is not able to procure to every district and provincial hospital without external help.
CITY OF HARARE AWARD OF THE RAMSAR WETLAND CITY
STATUS
- HON. MAJOME asked the Minister of Environment, Water and Climate to state whether the proposal by the Harare Wetland Trust for the City of Harare to be awarded the Ramsar Wetland City status would assist the City in securing funding for the provision of water in the City.
THE MINISTER OF ENVIRONMENT, WATER AND
CLIMATE (HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI): Mr. Speaker Sir, I fully appreciate the question from the Member of Parliament, Hon. Majome. Zimbabwe is a signatory to the Ramsar Convention which seeks to promote the wise use and conservation of wetlands. Accreditation for the Ramsar Wetland City Status generally promotes conservation and wise use of all wetlands by the signatory city, leading to attainment of sustainable socio-economic benefits for the local people.
This accreditation encourages communities that are close to and depend on wetlands to establish a positive relationship with these wetlands through increased participation, awareness and consideration of wetlands in local planning and decision making. The status comes with obligations that include upholding appropriate standards regarding water quality, sanitation and management in the entire area.
The suggestion for the Wetland City Accreditation for the City of Harare is in the right direction towards sustainable wetlands management which currently is a major challenge. The Ramsar Wetland City Accreditation is a new wetland management concept that was adopted at the Conference of Parties (COP) 12 in Ankara and is already incorporated to the Ramsar Strategic Plan 2016-2021.
Benefits of being awarded Ramsar Wetland City status include international cooperation in wetland conservation and management initiatives and access to Ramsar Grants for conservation that includes the Small Grants Fund established in 1990 and the Swiss Grant for Africa. The grant helps developing countries support the conservation and wise use of wetland resources and the sustainable development of communities which depend on them and care for them. Sustainable management of wetlands ensures water provision through recharging of underground water and water sources by wetlands….
HON. MAJOME: On a point of order, I am straining to hear the Hon. Minister’s reply. May Hon Members be kind enough to lower their voices.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. MARUMAHOKO):
May Hon. Members please lower your voices. The Hon. Member is complaining that she can hardly hear the Minister’s response.
HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI: Lastly, these benefits should also be realised by residents of the Harare Metropolitan province once the accreditation has been completed.
HON. MAJOME: My supplementary question to the Hon. Minister is that given her positive attitude and support of the possibility of Harare being awarded Ramsar Wetland City Status, what will the Hon. Minister do to support that attainment, given the rampant onslaught on wetlands in Harare?
HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI: Harare City Council works very closely with my Ministry. Whenever they are ready, we are more than ready also as a Ministry to support them.
GAZETTING OF THE NEW HARARE WETLAND MAP
- HON MAJOME asked the Minister of Environment, Water and
Climate to inform the House when the Ministry would gazette the new
Harare Wetland Map that was produced by the Environmental Management Agency as well as the National Action Plan.
THE MINISTER OF ENVIRONMENT, WATER AND
CLIMATE (HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI): Mr. Speaker Sir, my
Ministry has since produced and forwarded the draft proposal of the Harare Wetland Map gazette to the Attorney-General’s office, legal drafting section and we await their assessment. The gazetting will be done as soon as the draft has been reviewed and approved by the Attorney General’s office and we are targeting April this year for the gazetting.
In addition to the above legal process, my Ministry has since set up a technical team of different experts from universities, industry, civic society and Government to develop a comprehensive national wetland utilisation and management guidelines. Work on this study is at an advanced stage with the team now ready to conduct wide consultations in all the provinces before the finalisation of the baseline report and formulation of the national guidelines. It is within the terms of reference for the experts to include the National Action Plan for sustainable wetland management within this process. This work is part of my 100 day target.
ILLEGAL OCCUPATION AND FARMING ON WETLANDS
- HON MAJOME asked the Minister of Environment, Water and Climate to state measures being taken to curb illegal occupation and farming on wetlands.
THE MINISTER OF ENVIRONMENT, WATER AND
CLIMATE (HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI): Mr. Speaker Sir, my
Ministry is committed to stakeholder participation in environmental management that ensures local stewardship and sustainability of adopted practices. My Ministry is working tirelessly with various stakeholders in putting measures to control illegal occupation and farming on wetlands.
Some of the measures include; integration of the Local
Environmental Action Plan (LEAP) with the city master plan and local plans, engagement of Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing on measures to take in order to curb illegal occupation and construction in wetlands. A National Task force that comprise representatives from the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, Town Clerk’s forum, Ministry of Environment, Water and Climate and Environmental Management Agency has been set up. The terms of reference for the taskforce include mainstreaming of urban development with the need to protect and preserve wetlands as green belts, produce a guideline for wetland use options through consultative and participatory process; inclusion of wetland management in the Development Control Manual being compiled as a guide for local authorities; carry out an inventory of all the wetland sites in all the urban areas to identify sites that are already allocated for development and those that are still vacant and review and synchronise all the Statutory Instruments and by-laws that regulate wetland management and utilisation. Progress to date has been on:
Close collaboration and technical input by EMA to Physical Planning and City of Harare before a sub-division or development permit is issued to avoid conflict of decisions.
My Ministry is aware of ecological importance of wetlands and at the same time appreciates the importance of food security. The call for prohibition of wetland cultivation has been done working with responsible authorities. Most of these wetlands have banners erected with the message ‘No to cultivation’ but I assure the House that enforcement efforts by local authorities under strict supervision by EMA should be stepped up.
My Ministry is working with civic society advocating for the protection of wetlands and prohibition of cultivation in wetlands. Some of the civic societies include Conservation Society of Monavale,
Marlborough Wetlands Trust, Harare Wetlands Trust, and Lake Chivero Users Association among others. Education and awareness programmes on both electronic and print media is in progress.
Lastly, Mr. Speaker Sir, City of Harare was issued with an
Environmental Protection Order in terms of Section 4 (b) of the Environmental Management Act [Chapter 20:27] for the protection of wetlands and to stop wetlands cultivation.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Agency also issued environmental protection orders to seed companies who are also promoting urban agriculture and individuals involved in stream bank and wetland cultivation. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES ON ASHBRITTLE VLEI 5. HON. MAJOME asked the Minister of Environment, Water and Climate to state whether the Ministry has approved the development activities taking place on Ashbrittle Vlei near Borrowdale, since it is a wetland and if so, whether the Environmental Management Agency had approved the Environmental Impact Assessment for such developments.
THE MINISTER OF ENVIRONMENT, WATER AND
CLIMATE (HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI): Thank you Mr.
Speaker Sir. I need to highlight to the august House that projects listed in the first schedule of the Environmental Management Act [Chapter 20:27] are required to comply with the provisions of Section 97 of the said Act, in which they are required to have environmental impact assessment approval before project implementation. Housing development is one of the listed projects in the said Act.
Mr. Speaker Sir, coming to the development in question taking place on Ashbrittle Vlei, the developer submitted an Environment Impact Assessment report to the Agency and was issued with an EIA approval certificate. The decision was reached in consultation with my
Ministry in which the process involved conducting scientific ecological assessments by the agency and also independent consultants and other stakeholders were also contracted in order to make an evaluation.
The project developer was allocated 9,7 hectares of the total area of 18,34 hectares as a measure to safe guard negative impact to the Vlei.
HON. MAJOME: Is approval of development like in this particular case not a self contradiction of the Ministry’s espoused policy to protect wetlands? Is it about favouritism? Are there certain projects that are maybe better than others? I have asked this because the assessment of the Environmental Management Agency is called to question a lot and the suspicion of uneven handling. The Ministry and EMA; are they not shooting Government’s efforts in the foot to protect wetlands by approving some developments?
HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI: Mr. Speaker, I have already
alluded to the fact that the 18,34 hectares which this developer had been allocated, most of it was found to be not suitable which means a proper thorough assessment was done by independent consultants and also
EMA. They reached an agreement that only 9,7 hectares of that piece
of land is suitable for development. It means that it is not all of it and this exercise is undertaken on every project to establish which aspects can work and which aspects cannot work.
We need also to appreciate that Asia and UK are sitting on a wetlands. It is the regulations that each individual country puts to itself to make sure the flow of water is not interfered with. This is also what we considered which is part of our environmental impact assessment requirement. I thank you.
HON. MARIDADI: Hon. Speaker, the Hon. Minister speaks about UK and Asia sitting on wetlands and that there has been development. If UK and Asia have done it wrongly, it does not follow that as Zimbabwe we must follow their example and do it wrongly.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Ashbrittle wetland which the Minister has had an out of court settlement with the developer Kent Sharpe and has been allocated 9,7 hectares for development for both residential and shopping mall; you can tell by the low uptake of residential stands on Ashbrittle that it does not really matter what an Environmental Impact Assessment has been done by the Ministry or by EMA, it is still not suitable for human habitation. It is so clear. The Minister talks about wise use of wetlands, there must never be use of wetlands. Wetlands must be preserved as wetlands. They can never be use of wetlands which can be called wise. They must be preserved as wetlands so that we allow the ecosystem to endure.
Mr. Speaker, giving half of the 18, 34 hectares for development, it will still affect the ecosystem. Giving one hectare of the 18, 34 hectares will still affect the ecosystem and bio-diversity. The Minister should be able to know this. The Minister is assisted by technical people in the Ministry who must be able to know that if you just give half of the wet land or even a quarter of it for development, it affects the bio-diversity and it will no longer be a wetland.
HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I
want to thank Hon. Maridadi for that very important question. However, I would want to emphasise that technical work was done, very scientific which involved even outsiders, the University of Zimbabwe. A
technical team was put together, several of them, not just one because there was a legal wrangle until such time that they came to some understanding that this is what we were going to only allow. So, the Minister is adequately advised at every juncture by a technical team and we also consult widely.
I cannot comment on his business, how he is performing. If he is not doing well, it is up to the contractor because we cannot influence who should buy the properties. I thank you.
HON. MARIDADI: I am also favoured with technical information to the fact that Ashbrittle Vlei is not suitable for development which I am happy to present to this Parliament and the Minister can say whether or not the technical information I have is false. I am favoured with technical information from the University of Zimbabwe, EMA and from the Minister’s officers who will tell you that Ashbrittle Vlei can never be suitable for any development because it will disturb bio-diversity.
Mr. Speaker, I will be very happy to bring that diversity. Mr.
Speaker, I will be very happy to bring that technical information to this House but I want to urge the Hon. Minister to give a Ministerial
Statement after which I will present the technical information I have on Ashbrittle because I feel this is very important, it affects the livelihood of the people of Harare. Thank you.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Hon. Maridadi, I suggest that
you take whatever information you have, discuss with the Hon. Minister and she might decide otherwise, if you can liaise with the Hon. Minister.
Thank you.
HON. MLISWA: Mr. Speaker, Hon. Maridadi’s point is critical and the Minister has articulated issues pretty well. However, I think these are some of the legacy issues where the former Minister of Local Government, Ignatius Chombo, just did things which were out of order and gave land. The issue now is that the Minister is forced to deal with an issue out of the corrupt activities which the former Ministers were doing – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – Chombo was the godfather of land barons and he gave any piece of land anywhere. As such, the Minister has tried as much as she can and is doing her job. So, we should go back to the real land baron. The President has appointed a commission to deal with land barons, the first one is Chombo to be brought to the fore to answer this. I hope you take note of that. Thank you.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Mliswa, that is
why the Chair has ruled that Hon. Maridadi and the Minister should sit down and bring whatever you have to the Minister for her to make a statement to the nation.
HON. MARIDADI: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I cannot refuse a opportunity to sit down with the Hon. Minister. I am looking forward to it. I would love to sit down with the Hon. Minister. However, what I want to say is that the Minister knows it as much as everybody else that the Minister is trying to sanitise the corruption of the previous regime and she must not do that…
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Maridadi – [HON.
MARIDADI: Minister, you must not sanitise the corruption of Dr.
Chombo. If anything, you must be able to expose him, he is brought before this house and he must go to jail. Thank you.] – Hon. Maridadi, are you taking my advice? – [HON. MARIDADI: Sorry Mr. Speaker, it was just coming out, I could not hear you it was just coming out. I am sorry about that.] –
HON. GABBUZA: I am seeking clarification from the Minister. If an environmental protection order has been issued and an area is declared a wetland, can a developer come and do an environmental impact assessment to override that declaration of protection which would have been made?
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Hon. Gabbuza, it is exactly
what Hon. Maridadi has raised but in a different way. This is why I had suggested that Hon. Maridadi and the Minister sit down together.
REHABILITATION OF SACHIPIRI DAM
- HON. MHONA asked the Minister of Environment, Water and
Climate to explain why it has taken long to rehabilitate Sachipiri Dam in
Ward 18 and Maringobwe Dam in Ward 17 in Chikomba Central Constituency.
THE MINISTER OF ENVIRONMENT, WATER AND
CLIMATE (HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI): Thank you Mr.
Speaker Sir. I would like to thank Hon. Mhona for the question requiring me to explain the action my Ministry is taking to rehabilitate Sachipiri Dam in Ward 18 and Maringobwe Dam in Ward 17. The dams in question were received, brought to my attention by the Minister of State for Mashonaland East, Hon. Musabayana at the end of January, 2018. I indicated that the ZINWA team will be dispatched to the district to go and inspect the extent of the required repairs and the costs. Depending on the magnitude of the cost of the repairs, I intend to authorise that the repairs be met from the Ministry’s Water Fund.
Mr. Speaker Sir, let me take this opportunity to also remind Hon. Members of Parliament to report all weirs and boreholes which lack repairs and also indicate those that need to be sunk or constructed. I thank you.
FISH BREEDING PROJECT AT RUTI DAM
- 7. MUDEREDZWA asked the Minister of Environment,
Water and Climate to state when the Ruti Dam in Ward 19 in Buhera District would be considered for a major fish breeding project.
THE MINISTER OF ENVIRONMENT, WATER AND
CLIMATE (HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI): Mr. Speaker Sir, Ruti
Dam has already been identified as one of the dams to benefit from the Command Fisheries programme for Manicaland Province. The dam will be restocked like other dams under the Command Fisheries Restocking programme. This will be done after the stock assessment which determines the type of species in the dam and hence, will determine the stocking levels required. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
HON. MUDEREDZWA: I would like to thank the Minister for that recognition. However, is there any plan to reduce the number of crocodiles or the population of crocodiles in that dam because that dam was built during the colonial era? By design and purpose, it was intended to provide water to irrigation in Middle Sabi to the extent of discouraging people in Buhera to even use the water in that dam. Are there any contingency plans that are there to ensure that we reduce the number of crocodiles in that dam because it is a disaster to the community around it?
HON. MUCHINGURI-KASHIRI: Thank you Mr. Speaker. The
issue of crocodiles as raised by the Hon. Member, is a new issue which does not arise. However, now that the issue has been brought to my attention, I will dispatch a team so that we do an assessment as to how best we can reduce the number of crocodiles. I thank you.
HON. NDUNA: Sorry Mr. Speaker. Last week, the Minister of Mines and Mining Development was not here, but I got wind from one of the Ministers that they had prepared answers from the Ministry regarding our questions that were on the Order Paper last week. My question is, is there no one of the Ministers available who might have been favoured with the answers to these questions?
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Hon. Nduna, can you resume your seat. Obviously, if the Minister was here to answer on his behalf, he would have actually stood up. Why should I go to that extent and ask which Minister?
DISCREPANCIES IN THE DISTRIBUTION OF INPUTS
- HON. SARUWAKA asked the Minister of Lands, Agriculture and Rural Resettlement to:
- explain the discrepancies observed in the distribution of inputs under the Presidential Inputs Scheme considering that some beneficiaries in some districts and wards are allocated more inputs compared to others from other districts and others receive the inputs at the onset of the planting season while others at the middle or towards the harvest time.
- provide a schedule showing quantities of inputs allocated
each district throughout the country, the number of targeted beneficiaries in each district and the dates on which they received their allocations.
THE MINISTER OF LANDS, AGRICULTURE AND RURAL RESETTLEMENT (HON. RTD AIR CHIEF MARSHAL SHIRI):
Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I would like to thank Hon. Saruwaka for his question.
(a) Honourable Member, the discrepancies observed in the distribution of inputs are as a result of:
- Logistical challenges associated with movement of inputs; ii. The performance of contracted inputs suppliers vary across suppliers; and iii. Constraints associated with nostro funding also impacted negatively on timely availability of inputs.
(b) Honourable Member, inputs under the Presidential Well Wishers Agriculture Inputs Programme were distributed via the GMB depots with most of them overlapping districts, hence it is not possible to provide a schedule showing quantities allocated in each district. I will present a schedule of inputs received across GMB depots throughout the country and the targeted beneficiaries by depot. Collection of inputs by beneficiaries started in September 2017 and the programme is ongoing up to this day. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
HON. SARUWAKA: My supplementary question to the Minister is, when the Presidential Inputs Scheme was advertised, it was clearly stated that each beneficiary was entitled to 1 (50kgs) compound D, 1 (50 kgs) top dressing and a 10kg of seed maize. The experience in my constituency is that in some wards, up to four people were allocated one bag of fertilizer. I wanted to understand from the Minister whether that is permissible that the allocation would vary as per ward. In some of the wards, people got the full allocation but in others they were sharing the allocation.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Hon. Member, did you quite listen to his explanation on the discrepancies you were asking for?
HON. SARUWAKA: Yes, I listened.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: So, does that question arise?
HON. SARUWAKA: Yes, it does.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: I do not think so.
HON. RTD. AIR CHIEF MARSHALL PERRANCE SHIRI:
Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I would like to respond to the Hon. Member’s question whereby in some wards, I agree some members were given their full complement of inputs because they were supplied with enough inputs for that particular ward. Because of the reasons I stated earlier on, in some wards the inputs availed were not enough. Through consultations amongst various stakeholders, it is quite possible that they will have agreed that instead of giving specific individuals complete packs of the inputs, it was necessary to divide whatever was available amongst all members of the ward so that with the next supply, they would also undertake the same exercise. I believe that must have been the logic.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Thank you Hon. Minister. I
also have a rural constituency; that has been done in my constituency, it is no exception.
HON. SARUWAKA: My supplementary again is on the same matter. I would want to understand from the Minister whether it is the Ministry’s policy to ensure that all beneficiaries get the same quantities or according to his Ministry, it is possible that some beneficiaries get a quarter of what the others get. What is the Ministry’s policy?
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: I am ruling you out of order. The explanation was quite clear. I do not know what explanation you need. It is quite clear, he explained clearly.
HON. SARUWAKA: What was clear Mr. Speaker Sir?
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: I rule you out of order.
HON. MLISWA: On a point of clarity. I think the Minister is a great farmer himself but I did not hear him address the issue of giving inputs timeously. The issue is that, you have a situation where you give a farmer a 25 kgs of seed or 10 kgs in November, you give them compound D in December, yet you are supposed to plant the maize with the compound D. You then give the Ammonium Nitrate in February when during this time the crop has grown. What measures has he done to ensure that inputs are distributed timeously? If they are not distributed timeously, what does he do?
The other issue is, who distributes the inputs? The old Government had a tendency of having councillors and politicians involved and so forth. That is why people felt that this Presidential
Input Scheme was aligned to the ruling party yet it is for everyone. What measures has he done to ensure that the GMB that does the logistics and Agritex are there? It seems as if there is not much happening. I was in my constituency today and I had to stop the distribution of inputs because already some people were saying there were new lists coming in. What criteria is the village heads using in terms of verifying that this person is a farmer because there is a situation where the village head will submit a list of others who are not farmers. What mechanism has he put in place to ensure that the inputs are going to farmers? What happens Mr. Speaker Sir, is that you will get inputs being sold as a result of them being given to people who are not farmers.
I thank you.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: I would allow that one as a different question altogether.
THE MINISTER OF LANDS, AGRICULTURE AND RURAL RESETTLEMENT (HON. RTD. AIR CHIEF MARSHALL SHIRI):
Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I would like to respond to Hon. Mliswa. On the timing of the availability of the inputs, the determining factor is the availability of resources with which to procure those inputs. If we are availed with the resources timeously, we will be able to respond timeously as well but due to other pressing requirements, Treasury at times may not be having enough resources at a given time, hence the staggered sort of approach and some delays. What we were trying to do is to continue conscientising Treasury so that it appreciates the fact that in agriculture we deal with seasons and timing is of utmost importance. We have been hammering this point and we believe one day they shall appreciate our point of view.
As to the responsibility of distributing various inputs especially for the Presidential Input Scheme at village level, that is the responsibility of the District Administrators and their staff. Of course, they are assisted by the Grain Marketing Board and the Agritex officers. We expect them to do the distribution diligently. Thank you Mr. Speaker.
HON. GABBUZA: I just want to find out from the Minister, there is a new development and I want to know what policy position they are taking to redress this problem. The transporters, when they get to the rural areas, charge again for transport and it averages between $2 and $5 per bag. Now, in most cases when the deserving farmers fail to get the money, the undeserving merchants or business people end up buying the fertilizer by paying that money. What measures are they putting in place to solve that because the deserving farmers are not accessing the fertiliser because of the extra money charged by the transporters?
HON. RTD. AIR CHIEF MARSHALL SHIRI: Thank you Mr.
Speaker. I would like to thank the Hon. Member for his question. What happens is as Government we deliver the inputs to the various GMB depots …
HON. MLISWA: On a point order, Standing Order Number 56; it is important for Members of Parliament to listen to this distribution than busy making noise and as such I do not think the quorum is good enough. Most of them who are rural MPs are not even here to listen to the Minister talking about important issues which affect the people and the country at large. Standing Order Number 56 is clear that the quorum must be 70 and I do not think we are 70. Thank you.
[Bells rung.]
Notice having been taken that there being present fewer than 70 members, the bells were rung for Seven Minutes and a Quorum still not being present, THE HON. TEMPORARY SPEAKER adjourned the
House without question put at Five Minutes past Five O’clock p.m. pursuant to the provisions of Standing Order Number 56.
NOTE: The following members were present when the House adjourned: Hon. Bhudha M.; Hon. Chibagu G; Hon. Chigudu , M.; Hon.
Chikomba,L.; Hon. Chikwinya N.; Hon. Chingosho C.P.; Hon. Chitura
L.; Hon. Chiwetu J.Z.; Hon. Cross E.G.; Hon. Dziva T.M.; Hon Gabbuza J.G; Hon. Gonese I.T.; Hon. Hungwa G.; Hon. Kaundikiza M.; Hon. Khumalo M.; Hon. Mabuwa C.; Hon. Machingauta C.; Hon.
Madubeko J.; Hon. Mahiya M.; Hon. Majaya B; Hon. Majome F.J; Hon.
Makoni R.R.; Hon. Maridadi J.; Hon. Matimba K.M.; Hon.
Matsikenyere N.; Hon. Mavenyengwa R.; Hon. Mawere V.M.; Hon.
Mhona F.T.; Hon. Mkandla M.; Hon. Mlambo W.B.J.; Hon. Mlilo N.;
Hon. Mliswa P.T.; Hon. Moyo L.; Hon. Mpala M.; Hon. Mpariwa P.; Hon. Mpofu M.M.; Hon. Mpofu S.; Hon. Mtigwende T.; Hon. Mudarikwa S.; Hon. Muderedzwa R.; Hon. Mudyiwa M.; Hon. Mufunga A.; Hon. Mugido M.; Hon. Muguti R.; Hon. Mukwena R.; Hon.
Mupfumi I.F.; Hon. Musanhi K.S.; Hon. Ncube G.M.; Hon. Ndhlovu A.;
Hon. Ndlovu N.; Hon. Ndoro L.F., Hon. Nduna D.; Hon. Nhambu B.; Hon. Nkomo Mail; Hon. Nyere C.; Hon. Passade J.; Hon. Porusingazi
E.; Hon. Rungani A.; Hon. Sansole T.W.; Hon. Saruwaka T.J.L.; Hon.
Shongedza E.; Hon. Shiri P.; Hon. Sibanda M.; Hon. Tshuma J.; Hon.
Uta K.; Hon. Vutete M.; Hon. Wadyajena J.M.; Hon. Zhou P and Hon.
Ziyambi Z.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Thursday, 8th February, 2018
The National Assembly met at a Quarter-past Two o’clock p. m.
PRAYERS
(THE ACTING SPEAKER in the Chair)
MINISTERIAL STATEMENT
CORRUPTION AT THE VEHICLE INSPECTION DEPARTMENT
(VID)
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. Yesterday, there was a request from Hon. Members through Hon. Maridadi that I must make a ministerial statement on corruption at the Vehicle Inspection Department (VID). I would like to thank you for affording me the opportunity to make this statement in respect of corruption at the VID. The Zimbabwe driver’s licence is an internationally recognised document. Since Zimbabwe is a signatory to the 1986 United Nations Convention, our citizens can obtain an international driving permit upon production of our driver’s licence. Such a permit allows you to drive in other States that are signatories to the same. It is the duty of the Government of Zimbabwe and indeed my Ministry to jealously guard against its status.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the public domain is awash with reports of driving school instructors who act as conduits in the alleged corrupt practices related to the issuance of drivers’ licences. In line with the stance adopted by His Excellency the President, Cde. E. D. Mnangagwa, I would like to warn all owners of driving schools and their staff that all allegations of corruption will be fully investigated and handed over to the ZRP for prosecution. Where it is established that the driving school is involved, we shall ensure that it is closed.
Mr. Speaker Sir, we have also heard of VID driving examiners who corruptly issue certificates of competency and even provisional driver’s licences. My Ministry is also aware that corruption at the VID is not only confined to the issuance of driver’s licences but has spread to other services offered such as certificate of fitness for vehicles. On the
31st of January, 2018…
THE ACTING SPEAKER (HON. MARUMAHOKO): Order,
Hon. Members to my left. You are the very people who requested the
Minister to make a ministerial statement today. He has humbly left the Politburo in session to come and deliver this important message to the nation and you are starting to make noise.
HON. DR. GUMBO: Thank you Mr. Speaker. On the 31st of
January 2018, my Ministry met with representatives of driving schools, VID personnel, Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe and other stakeholders. I reminded them that indecorous behaviour from public officials who betray the trust bestowed upon them as Government employees will no longer be tolerated. I also appealed to the Director Vehicle Inspection Department and all Depot Managers to inform their staff that in this new dispensation, we will not accept any form of corruption.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I would like to assure this august House that within the context of the 100 days action programme, tangible action will be taken on errant officers by the office of the permanent secretary. Any VID Driving Examiner who coerces driving school instructors to ask for bribes should be dealt with without fear or favour.
Fifty four officers have so far been fired when it was discovered that they were engaged in corrupt activities. The stations affected include VID Chiredzi which issued 199 driver’s licences to undeserving applicants. The licences were subsequently cancelled by the Ministry. Mr. Speaker Sir, officers from VID Eastlea, VID Belvedere, VID
Chitungwiza, VID Nyamapanda, VID Chinhoyi, VID Marondera, VID
Victoria Falls, VID Kwekwe, VID Chirundu, VID Mutare and VID Kadoma were also dismissed for engaging in corrupt activities.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I have also directed the Traffic Safety Council of
Zimbabwe to execute their regulatory responsibilities as outlined in the
Traffic Safety Council Act. It is the duty of the council to enforce driving school regulations that we gazette under Statutory Instrument
309 of 1985. Some of the requirements are as follows;
- the need to register every driving school and do annual renewals of such registration;
- all driving school instructors should be trained, certified and monitored regularly;
- renewals by driving schools and instructors must be done timeously; and
- driving schools should be inspected on a regular basis.
I would like also to appeal to Members of Parliament to advise prospective drivers in their different constituencies to use registered driving schools and not to tempt the instructor or VID driving examiner by offering them bribes. I have also ordered the TSCZ to publish and avail to the public a list of all registered driving schools.
Mr. Speaker Sir, it is disheartening to note that the acts of corruption that I have alluded to have continued despite the introduction of innovative measures at the institution aimed at reducing the same.
These measures include the following:
- the balling system whereby a learner driver who would have come for a road test picks a ball from a basket with an office number leading them to the Examiner who will take them for the test. This strategy is envisaged to counter pre-arranged corrupt practices;
- In line with SADC harmonisation of standards for testing drivers, we have constructed in all VID yards, SADC standard hill-starts, three point-turn facilities, parallel parking facilities and reversing facilities. This strategy enhances transparency and fairness by ensuring that 80% of the road test is conducted in the yard in full view of members of the public;
- With effect from 6th March, 2016, all VID depots and vehicles are required to display toll free numbers so that members of the public can give feedback on service delivery and also to report corrupt practices;
- Erection of Notice Boards at all VID Depots informing members of the public to phone the supplied numbers if they have been asked for consideration or a bribe by VID Officials or anyone in order to pass a test or to pass a vehicle for a certificate of fitness;
- All depots have suggestion boxes strategically positioned for members of the public to air their views as feedback on service delivery;
- Senior Officers are allowed to recall all already inspected vehicles for check on five main systems on a vehicle and Managers are also allowed to randomly accompany Examiners on road tests for quality control purposes; and
- Frequent rotation of examiners so that they do not develop relationships with potential learner drivers and driving schools.
- There is a transfer policy which helps in mitigating against over- familiarisation of officers with members of the public which has a high propensity for corruption.
- In line with advancements in the global village, VID as a learning organisation will, in the near future, move towards automation of its services under the ZIMITS programme which will help to reduce direct human interface, thereby reducing corruption.
- Speaker Sir, the fight against corruption at the VID requires all of us to play our part. I therefore urge Members of Parliament, particularly the Portfolio Committee on Transport and
Infrastructural Development to play an active role to combat this scourge. I thank you.
RECOMMITTAL TO COMMITTEE STAGE
FINANCE BILL [H. B. 1A, 2018]
First Order read: Recommittal to Committee: Finance Bill, [H. B.
1A, 2018].
House in Committee.
Hon. Chinotimba having stood up on a matter of privilege.
THE ACTING SPEAKER: Hon. Chinotimba, I gave enough
time for anyone who had something to say and nobody stood up but now you start saying you have …
*HON. CHINOTIMBA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. My point of
privilege is that I want to bid farewell to the august House as Ambassador of Happiness, I am going to Dubai. I hope and trust that you will remain well and that no one will scold anyone. My word to you as Members of Parliament is that you should go back to the constituencies and do your duty. You should not stay here in Harare, instead you should go back to the people and get to know what their requirements are – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible Interjections.] –
THE TEMPORARY CHAIRPERSON (HON. DZIVA): Order
Hon. Members, let us revert to Committee.
On Clause 37:
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Madam Chair, I move the amendment standing in my name with regard to Clause 37; it is a small amendment. In the Bill, we referred to the Speaker as someone who has been a Member of Parliament. That is not correct; you can have a Speaker who has not been a Member of Parliament. So, the amendment is deleting the words Member of Parliament and substituting with person. I so submit Madam Chair.
Amendment to Clause 37 put and agreed to.
Clause 37, as amended, put and agreed to.
House resumed.
Bill reported with amendments.
Bill referred to the Parliamentary Legal Committee.
SECOND READING
PUBLIC ENTITIES CORPORATE GOVERNANCE BILL [H. B. 5,
2017]
Second Order read: Adjourned debate on the Second Reading of the Public Entities Corporate Governance Bill [H. B. 5, 2017] .
Question again proposed.
HON. CHAPFIKA:
1.0 INTRODUCTION
The Finance and Economic Development Portfolio Committee conducted public hearings on the Public Entities and Corporate
Governance Bill, 2017 currently before Parliament from 21st to 26th
January, 2018. The hearings are in compliance with Section 141 of the Constitution, which requires Parliament to ensure interested parties are consulted before passing a piece of legislation in Zimbabwe. The Public Entities Corporate Governance Bill was gazetted on the 21st of July 2017 in line with Chapter 9 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, which provides for the administration of public institutions or Government controlled entities. Sections 194 and 198 of the Constitution mandate the State to adopt and implement policies and legislation aimed at developing integrity and financial probity in all institutions and agencies of Government at every level and in every public institution.
The proposed Public Entities Corporate Governance Bill will ensure uniformity in the operations of all the public entities in
Zimbabwe by regulating the conditions of service of board members and the senior staff of the public entities as Government strives to arrest corruption, improve service delivery as well as boost the performance of these institutions. The expectation is that by improving the internal management structures of parastatals and other public entities, this should lead to an improvement in their performance. Public entities such as State Enterprises and parastatals play a critical developmental role in the provision of public goods and services.
2.0 METHODOLOGY
Pursuant to the provisions of section 141 of the Constitution, the Committee invited members of the public to express their views on the proposed Bill in public meetings and through written submissions. The public hearings were conducted in all the country’s 10 provinces, in the following areas; Harare, Bulawayo, Chinhoyi, Plumtree, Gweru,
Lupane, Marondera, Masvingo, Bindura, and Mutare. The turnout was modest to good, with Bulawayo achieving the highest number of people followed by Gweru and Chinhoyi. Generally, attendance was based on interest and knowledge on the topic at hand and given that this was a very technical Bill, it did not attract the attention of many people since they felt it did not affect them although they were affected. Thus, this report therefore, summarises the views of the people of Zimbabwe during these public hearings.
3.0 SUBMISSIONS BY MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC
3.1 Appointment of Board Members
On the appointment of board members, it is proposed that the board members be appointed in consultation with relevant Portfolio Committees of Parliament. Some members of the public submitted that it is vital for such board members to be publicly appointed as is the case with the Judges as these people are responsible for managing public assets on behalf of the people of Zimbabwe.
Furthermore, people observed that the maintenance of a database of qualified candidates for board appointments by the Corporate Governance Unit and not the Minister is probably a good move as it may stem corruption and abuse of office. However, the people should be allowed to submit nominations in addition to the database kept by the
CGU.
3.2. Term Limits for Board Members
The members of the public welcomed the provision to set term limits on the tenure of office for board members to one term of four years. Although there is provision for reappointment for another fouryear term, members of the public submitted that board members should serve for one term only because Zimbabwe is endowed with people with capacity.
3.3 Appointment and Tenure of Office of Chief Executive
Officers of Public Entities
The members of the public pointed out that the position of CEO is at the centre of the organisation since he/she is the one accountable for the organisation’s performance. Therefore, it was noted that fixing term limits for the CEOs to two terms exposes the public entities since there will not be any continuity within the organisation which is important in the long run for the organisation to achieve its objectives. Members of the public suggested that term limits for CEOs should be removed and allow the qualified and experienced CEOs to be hired probably on contractual basis until retirement if his/her performance is satisfactory. However, others lamented that hiring management on contractual basis may lead to inefficiencies; while others argued that it will enhance efficiency within the public entity as the CEOs would work to prove him or herself for re-appointment. Therefore, it was recommended that CEOs tenure of office should be limited by performance contracts and by age rather than term limits since the CEO runs the organisation and there is need for continuity.
3.4 Limit on Number of Boards an individual can serve at a time
In addition, members of the public welcomed the provision that no one shall be allowed to serve on more than two boards at a time. While this is an improvement from the current situation whereby some of the board members have been serving in many boards for many years. Some members of the public also were of the view that they would have expected that the Bill provides for a board member to strictly serve on one board for enhanced efficiency, competency and effectiveness of the individual board member since he/she will not be overwhelmed by the demands that comes as a result of serving on many boards. Members of the public highlighted that there is a large pool of competent and skilled
Zimbabweans qualified to serve on the boards of these public entities.
3.5 Appointment of Public Officers as Board Members
Members of the public felt that Clause 11 (5) of the Bill which provides for full-time employees of the State to be appointed to boards of public entities (although they cannot form a majority on any such board), allows too much interference in the running of the public entity by Ministry officials. Participants however liked the provision which bar permanent secretaries from being appointed to or holding office as a member of any such board. In the past, this has been abused by permanent secretaries, with some of them running the entity as a oneman band and engaging in rampant abuse and theft of the entity’s financial resources and assets.
3.6 Powers of the Minister
Another major concern emanating from the public hearings was that line Ministers still have too much control over the appointment of board members of public entities. The only change is that the ministers must avail the names of the proposed members for inspection by the Corporate Governance Unit. It is strongly felt that Parliament should be given such powers through the relevant Portfolio Committee. In other words, the Minister should not have the final say, but should recommend names for approval by Parliament. Too much power conferred to
Ministers in the management of the public entities means that the Corporate Governance Unit will be weakened in its statutory role of enforcing compliance.
The members of the public felt that the powers of the Ministers must be limited to ensure transparency. It was observed that the Minister hires, appoints, dismisses and supervises the same people within the institution and there was no separation of powers. Given that boards and CEOs are key people in public entities, members of the public felt that their appointments and dismissal should involve key stakeholders such as Parliament to avoid the abuse of office and cases whereby the appointed owes their existence to the Minister and seeks to please them. It was recommended that the Ministers be there to set progressive policies and guidance only to the institutions and allow the public entities to perform their mandate.
3.7 Fixing of Fees and Remuneration of board members and
senior staff
Clause 14 and 20 intends to fix fees and remuneration for board members and senior staff of public entities. The Bill assigns the responsibility to the line Minister and the Minister of Finance only. The members of the public felt that the Bill seems to be giving the powers to fixing remuneration to the Minister who “formulates the model conditions of service for the board members and the senior staff.
Members of the public have asked that “since when have Ministers become experts in fixing remuneration?” The members of the public highlighted with concern that the same principles being used in practice today are still being considered. Some members of the public recommended that the CGU be involved in the fixing of such fees and remuneration since its role is advisory to line Ministries. It was also suggested that the best practice is for board fees to be paid per quarter instead of per sitting to reduce the level of abuse. The level of board fees should always be based on affordability and sustainability.
Clause 20 also gives the Minister the power to cap remuneration of the CEO and Executives. The members of the public felt that this provision may cripple the operations of some public entities that hires critical and specialised staff. The State entities will lose qualified staff into the private sector especially the second and third level
Executives. The overriding factor in fixing remuneration at whatever level should always be affordability and sustainability and that their salaries must not exceed thirty per centum of that entity’s revenues or operational budget in the past financial year as proposed in the Bill.
3.8 Strategic Plans
Clause 22 – gives a framework for strategic plans. The members of the public argued that this provision may not work because by the time the Bill is presented to the National Assembly, they will have been overtaken by events. The problem is not that they do not have strategic plans; the problem is implementation which is even going to be made even more difficult by this new clause.
3.9 Performance Contract
Members of the public welcomed the proposed measure of performance assessment of board members and senior staff of such public entities. However, members of the public felt that there is just too much interference by line ministries in the running of State entities that will make it difficult to hold any CEO or board member accountable. It was pointed out that Government has been implementing performance contracts with its civil servants and this has proved not to be effective as nothing is done to non-performing officers.
3.10 Monitoring and Evaluation
Members of the public noted with concern the lack of time frames, monitoring and evaluation systems in place. It was noted that there was lack of implementation of recommendations raised by the Auditor-
General’s office and monitoring of public entities. The members of the public welcomed the provision on strategic plan and performance contracts as very progressive and recommended for the strong monitoring and evaluation of such to be put in place.
3.11 The members of the public welcomed the provision that both the senior staff and board members of the public entities should be appointed based on merit, regional representation and the 50/50 gender balance. The process must be transparent. Inclusion of the younger generation in the boards was also key so that the public entities would benefit from the younger generation.
3.12 While the Government should be applauded for taking steps to address corporate governance issues in public entities through the Public Entities and Corporate Governance Bill, it should be noted that the major perennial problem with State entities has not been lack of legislation to deal with violations of standards, but lack of political will to implement the various remedial measures available in the current statutes. Participants were not sure how this Bill will address the lack of political will in taking remedial action in State entities.
4.0 COMMITTEE’S FINDINGS AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
4.1 The Committee noted that general feedback from the people is
that the Bill is a good piece of legislation in as far as it tries to bring sanity in the public enterprise sector. It is public knowledge that the majority of the entities are mismanaged, have been posting perennial losses and receiving Government financial bailouts. Their burden on the fiscus has been massive, thereby contributing to the unsustainable fiscal deficits that have caused severe headaches for the fiscal authorities. According to statistics from the Office of the President and Cabinet, 38 of the 93 State-owned enterprises (SOEs) audited in 2016 incurred a combined $270 million loss as a result of weak corporate governance practices and ineffective control mechanisms. Of the 93 SOEs, 70% of them were ‘technically insolvent’ or ‘illiquid’ presenting an actual or potential drain on an already overburdened fiscus.
4.2 The Committee also noted that violations of governance all over the world are carried out by people who are not aware of what needs to be done. These violations are perpetrated by people who are very educated and knowledgeable about how businesses are run. At the core of most of the corporate governance problems in State enterprises is the selection of people of low integrity who easily “morally disengage” and find themselves involved in illegal activities.
4.3 The Committee further observed that there is no mechanism in Government to select people based on merit and this problem affects all State entities. Thus, it was concluded that unless the above two problems are addressed; the Bill when it becomes law is likely to have very little impact on how state enterprises are run.
4.4 The Committee is also concerned that in setting fees and remuneration for board members and executives, the Bill refers to experience and qualification instead of referring to both the entity’s performance and the individual performance of board members or executives. It is recommended that the Bill provides for the fees and remuneration to be commensurate with the entity’s performance and individual performance and not only experience and qualifications.
4.5 A closer look at the Bill shows that nothing has changed from the current practices for running State entities. In the Bill, Ministers are still empowered to appoint board members for State entities supervised by their ministries. This has been the practice before. The only change is that they must avail the names of the proposed members for inspection by the Corporate Governance Unit. Secondly, the Ministers still fixes fees for board members and any other allowances. This has been there before. Thirdly, the board fixes salaries for executives but the Ministers approve salaries for executives and that has been the case before as boards always sought approval from the Minister. It is very likely that the status quo will continue. The Committee recommends that the relevant Parliamentary Committees be involved to enhance transparency and accountability of public resources.
4.6 The Bill introduces new areas that are likely to present new problems. The first problem is that the Bill allows the board to fix exit packages for executives in advance. This is an archaic practice that will be too costly for the Government. The Labour Act is very clear that on exit, an employee is entitled to two weeks’ salary for every year served (minimum) and why would the Government want anything more than this to be fixed in advance. This will leave room for boards and appointed executives to negotiate for exorbitant exit packages. This practice is not there in the private sector because it is costly and why would the Government with its limited resources want to adopt this practice. It is therefore recommended that the provision be removed and allow the Labour Act to be applied in all public institutions
4.7 While the introduction of regional balance in appointments of executives sounds good on paper, it brings an unnecessary burden on the entities administratively and will bring accusations and counter accusations. Yes, the Constitution talks about bringing in regional balance in the appointment of people to public entities but the overriding factor should always be merit on the appointment of executives. The application of regional balance should be limited to board members only.
4.8 It is interesting that this Bill does not give the Corporate Governance Unit enough power to ensure compliance as the Ministers still hold most of the power in relation to the management of State entities. The Unit will be run by a permanent secretary level person. The Committee supports the establishment of the CGU, which is housed in the President’s Office since it will be well equipped to supervise line Ministers and the public entities.
4.9 The Bill allows a board member to be on the board of a public entity and also on the board of its subsidiary. This violates the principle of checks and balances commensurate with the normal corporate governance practices. The Committee recommends a separate board to be appointed for the subsidiaries of public entities to ensure transparency and accountability.
4.10 The Committee noted with concern that the role of the Ministry in the management of public entities has not changed, while that Bill is silent on the role of Parliament. This has been the major source of most governance problems in public entities especially interference by Ministry staff in the running of public entities.
Therefore, it is recommended that the role of Parliament, especially, that of relevant Portfolio Committees, be visible, especially on hiring, appointing and dismissal of CEOs and board members.
5.0 MAIN RECOMMENDATIONS
5.1 Parliament’s Oversight Role
Parliament, through its relevant Portfolio Committee, should be actively involved in the approval and dismissal of board members and CEOs of public entities. The relevant Portfolio Committees should also be appraised on the public entities’ strategic plans to enhance its oversight role on the public entities and ensure transparency and accountability.
5.2 Harmonisation of Executive Remuneration and Board
Fees
The Committee has noted the huge differences in fees and remunerations on the different boards and executives of public entities and recommends for the harmonisation of such fees and remuneration.
5.3 Rationalisation the CGU and the SERA
The Bill sets up a Corporate Governance Unit (CGU) in the
President’s Office while there is already the State Enterprise Reform Authority (SERA) in existence. The Committee feels that the two institutions’ roles should be rationalised.
5.4 Harmonisation of Laws
The Committee also recommends for the harmonisation of the
Local Government Act and this Bill, once it becomes law.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. Speaker Sir, I now
move that the Bill be now read a second time.
Motion put and agreed to.
Bill read a second time.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. Speaker Sir, there are
a number of amendments that I want to effect to the Bill as well as to take into account the submissions which have been made. I would want more time to consider those submissions. I accordingly move that the
Committee Stage be next Tuesday, 13th February, 2018.
Committee Stage: Tuesday, 13th February, 2018.
ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE ACTING SPEAKER
NON-ADVERSE REPORT RECEIVED FROM THE
PARLIAMENTARY LEGAL COMMITTEE
THE ACTING SPEAKER: I have received a Non-Adverse
Report from the Parliamentary Legal Committee on the Finance Bill [H. B. 1A, 2018].
Consideration Stage: With leave, forthwith.
CONSIDERATION STAGE
FINANCE BILL [H. B. 1A, 2018]
Amendment to Clause 37 put and agreed to.
Bill, as amended, adopted.
Third Reading: With leave, forthwith.
THIRD READING
FINANCE BILL [H. B. 1A, 2018]
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. Speaker Sir, I now
move that the Bill be read the third time.
Motion put and agreed to.
Bill read the third time.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFIARS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Mr. Speaker Sir,
I move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 3 to 5 be stood over until Order of the Day, Number 6 has been disposed of.
Motion put and agreed to.
CONSIDERATION STAGE
ESTATES ADMINISTRATORS AMENDMENT BILL [H. B.
8A, 2016] Amendment to Clause 9 put and agreed to.
Bill, as amended, adopted.
Third Reading: With leave, forthwith.
THIRD READING
ESTATES ADMINISTRATORS AMENDMENT BILL [H. B.
8A, 2016]
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARILAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Mr. Speaker Sir,
I now move that the Bill be read the third time.
Motion put and agreed to.
Bill read the third time.
On the motion of THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI), the House adjourned at Six Minutes past Three o’clock p. m. until Tuesday, 13th February, 2018.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Wednesday, 7th February, 2018
The National Assembly met at a Quarter-past Two o’clock p. m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. SPEAKER in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENTS BY THE HON. SPEAKER
APOLOGIES RECEIVED FROM MINISTERS
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have received the following apologies from Hon. Ministers; Hon. Dr. O. Mpofu, Hon. Dr. Bimha, Hon.
Marapira, Hon. Ziyambi, Hon. Rtd. Air Marshall Shiri, Hon. Prof. P.
Mavima.
VISITORS IN THE SPEAKER’S GALLERY
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have to acknowledge the presence in the Speaker’s Gallery of students and teachers from FNBA College in Harare Province. You are most welcome. - [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] –
ERROR ON THE FINANCE BILL [H. B. 1, 2018]
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have to inform the House that we have noted an error on Clause 39 of the Finance Bill [H. B. 1, 2018]. The Bill will therefore be recommitted to the Committee of the Whole House tomorrow.
NON-ADVERSE REPORT RECEIVED FROM THE
PARLIAMENTARY LEGAL COMMITTEE
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have to inform the House that I have received a non-adverse report from the Parliamentary Legal Committee on the Estates Administrators Amendment Bill [H. B. 8A, 2017].
INVITATION TO PARTICIPATE ON THE KIDZCAN ORANGE
WEEK 2018
THE HON. SPEAKER: I also have to inform the House that
KIDZCAN Zimbabwe, a children’s cancer relief organisation, is inviting Hon. Members to participate on ‘Orange Week 2018’, which is a children with cancer awareness project, from 11th to 18th February, 2018. All Hon. Members are urged to create their own Orange Day by dressing up in orange and donating a dollar in order to support the worthy cause of KIDZCAN. You are all kindly requested to give feedback to KIDZCAN Zimbabwe, in form of pictures and videos. All proceeds will be used to assist children who are battling cancer. Please check your pigeon holes for further information.
HON. ADV. CHAMISA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I rise on a point of privilege in terms of our Standing Orders just to alert the House that Parliament has to do something regarding the vulnerability of Hon. Members of Parliament in the various constituencies, particularly in the context of an attack on one of our Members of Parliament yesterday. I have had an occasion to check with the Police in Epworth and discovered that there was an attack on a Member of Parliament Hon. Zalerah Makari. Hon. Makari was attacked by some unknown persons at Epworth board. The reason is still not yet known. The RRB number is 3448819. A police report has been made. I am saying this because we are seeing an escalation in the vulnerability, not just of Members of Parliament but also the ordinary citizens, particularly in the context of our run-up to elections. We do not want our elections to be tainted with accusations of lack of credibility, violence or instability within the country. So, may something be done Hon. Speaker Sir, because this is a very serious issue? You are aware that in the United Kingdom, a
Member of Parliament by the name Deborah Cox was actually killed. As a Member of Parliament, you attract a lot of envy from competition, detractors and enemies of our country. So, it is important that we do not just move to protect Members of Parliament; we also have to do something to make sure that there is peace and stability in the country.
May this be taken to the President so that his call on free and fair elections is actually made a reality within political parties and also for intra-party democracy generally across the whole country. No Zimbabwean must lose life in 2018 on account of either intra-party elections or elections in general. Hon. Speaker, I rest my case. I thought I needed to bring this to your attention, asking you to do something about it, but also asking Government to issue a very stern warning and a very powerful statement, particularly dealing with the perpetrators because we are seeing an escalation.
Of course, another week, it was not a Member of Parliament but an
NPP member, a leader of the Opposition Party who was attacked in Glen
Norah. It is not a good thing. We want the new dispensation to be new. We want the new era to be a new era not a new mistake of the old acts that are repeating themselves. Advocate Hon. Speaker Sir, thank you very much for your indulgence and may God bless you. Thank you.
Hon. Holder having stood up before the Speaker had responded.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Holder, you have to wait until I
make a comment on the matter raised; then I will recognise you. It is very sad that this has happened. It was only yesterday as I came out of the Chamber that the said Hon. Member had indicated to me that she was not safe and I had advised her to immediately inform the police so that she could have some long distance security cover. I do not know whether she proceeded accordingly but she had indicated to me yesterday that she was under threat from unknown people who have threatened her. I will convey the message accordingly to the powers that be and also, I think it should be recorded that the incident referred to by Hon. Adv. Chamisa in Glen Norah, where a member of the opposition and others were attacked; I think it should be applauded that the police took swift action and the perpetrators were arrested and are facing court charges.
HON. HOLDER: Thank you Hon. Speaker. I rise on a point of privilege, on what Hon. Chamisa was saying. I am on the same note that as Hon. Members, I personally was attacked in a newspaper by The
Mirror, dated 1st February, 2018 with a headline “Zvishavane MP stabbed for affair with a married woman”. I do not even know – my family is in panic; everybody is in panic and I have got people across the country phoning to find out what is going on. I think newspapers should never write things that are not true. This is what is happening to us.
I have not been stabbed; I am well, healthy and I do not even know- my wife is there. So, I do not understand this Mr. Speaker. The newspapers should report the truth because we have business people, colleagues and everybody that are actually looking up at us as leaders and when you get such a placard “Zvishavane MP stabbed,” where? I do not know; for what? I do not know. Hon. Speaker, we need a serious intervention on that. It is also tarnishing party names, whether it is opposition or the ruling party. It gives a very bad image to us as leaders.
Thank you Mr. Speaker.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Members, what Hon. Adv.
Chamisa raised was not a motion, so we cannot carry on debating that. While I note with sadness what Hon. Holder has said, I think appropriate action should be taken through your legal advisors so that you can get a retraction of that statement. I am hoping that the media fraternity is around and they should be able to take note of what you have just said.
Hon Nduna having stood up.
THE HON. SPEAKER: What is it?
HON. NDUNA: Hon. Speaker, I seek that you recognise me on a
point of privilege.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order, Hon. Members, let us not
abuse this time.
HON. NDUNA: I promise not to abuse it Mr. Speaker. A few days ago, the Minister of Health and Child Care made a Ministerial
Statement. I bring to the House the thankfulness of the people of Chegutu West and also that they are not yet out of the woods in terms of the cholera epidemic. I applaud a lot of arms that have been embedded with us, in particular, Hon. J. Moyo, Hon. S. K. Moyo, Hon.
Parirenyatwa…
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order! Hon. Member, that is not a
privilege, it is a matter in the public domain. Thank you.
ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE
HON. MAJOME: My question is directed to the Minister of
Transport and Infrastructural Development. Hon. Minister, what are the plans of your Ministry in order to curb road carnage generally on highways that pass through urban roads in terms of improving traffic control at dangerous intersections, in particular Harare-Bulawayo highway at the intersection, for example at Tynwald Drive, where there is N. Richards? I think there is need to put traffic lights or other such controls in order to curb and stop accidents that happen, particularly there – [HON. DR. GUMBO: At Tynwald?] – Yes.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Address the Chair.
HON. MAJOME: I beg your pardon Mr. Speaker Sir. Accidents
are happening on traffic sections that are poorly controlled such as Harare-Bulawayo Road at Tynwald Drive.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Are you not repeating yourself now? I thought you mentioned Tynwald already.
HON. MAJOME: My apologies Mr. Speaker Sir. I thought you
had said I should address you, so I thought you wanted me to clarify.
THE HON. SPEAKER: No, I think the Hon. Minister has got
the question.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Thank you Mr. Speaker. I want to thank Hon. Majome for that very important question which gives me an opportunity to explain what the Ministry is doing along the roads in order to curb the accidents that we find along our roads.
Generally speaking, on the main highways, what the Ministry is doing is actually coming up with perimeter fencing which has stalled just because of the cost of the material that we use, but we are actually doing our best to make sure that we provide the perimeter fencing as provided by the Ministry. We have already started doing that along most of our roads at the moment but regarding the specific question that the Hon. Member is talking about, which is pointing at some intersections mostly in urban areas, what we have been doing in order to curb accidents along such places is to come up with what you have just mentioned, to put on some robot controls so that we can control the movement of traffic. The area that the Hon. Member is talking about - that is why I wanted to find out exactly which place, whether it is along Kirkman Road or it is at the intersection of Tynwald Road where we have some shops, which really is becoming an area of concern. Also beyond that, as you travel from Dzivarasekwa into Kuwadzana, at those places, we are putting up some robot controls. So, maybe very soon you should see that robots will be erected at those intersections. That is what we are doing.
Because of the traffic that has increased in Harare unexpectedly, most of our intersections definitely now need a lot of reconsideration between ourselves and the City of Harare, including the Mbudzi area where it becomes a nightmare for most people especially during weekends and even after work in the evenings. So, we are looking at all those places in order to come up with some control measures such as robots at those places. So, I want to thank you very much for that question because it is important but it is also under consideration – you will see some robots being erected as soon as possible. I thank you.
HON. MAJOME: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I thank the Hon. Minister for his eye on such important things. My supplementary question is, can the Hon. Minister maybe by way of approximation indicate a possible timeframe as to when motorists along that particular road; Harare-Bulawayo Road intersection with Tynwald that you identified near N. Richards as well as also on the other side on Kirkman Road and Tynwald Road, by way of approximation maybe a few months
– when we expect to see traffic and better control at those intersections? I thank you.
HON. DR. J. GUMBO: I did not hear anything because there is a lot of noise from Members on the left Mr. Speaker.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Can you repeat your question please?
HON. MAJOME: Mr. Speaker Sir, my question is to ask the Hon. Minister to indicate even by approximation what kind of timeframe that he has in mind by which motorists can expect to see maybe traffic lights and better controls at that particular Harare-Bulawayo Road intersection as well as Kirkman Road on the other side. How many months approximately can we expect traffic controls there? Thank you.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, Hon. Member, I was going to
rule you out of order because you are now being specific. You asked for policy direction on what the Minister is going to do on those danger spots but now if you are going to ask for a specific part of a road, that becomes more specific. I do not think that is a policy matter.
HON. MAJOME: Mr. Speaker Sir, the Hon. Minister was
gracious enough to also show his concern by responding specifically, so I want to believe that it seemed as if he has plans.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, he gave an example and went
further to mention areas like Dzivarasekwa. So, my ruling stands.
HON. KWARAMBA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question
goes to the Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development. Hon. Minister, I would like to know what the Ministry is doing regarding VID officials who are issuing fake drivers’ licences? Thank you.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I want to thank Hon. Kwaramba for asking that very important question. Mr. Speaker Sir, it was only this week that I made a stern warning to VID officers and also driving schools. Not only that, also even those people who go to the driving schools because they want to get drivers’ licences. These three groups of people should be warned that they must stop the corruption that we witness or is being purpoted on. I warned VID officials and I said, if we continue to hear what we are being told about their activities, they are going to be either fired from work or we might arbitrarily transfer them without notice so that we try and bring some order into VID.
I went further on Friday night to address again the Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe and again made the same stern warning that we are aware and that reports are coming to us, that there is a lot of corruption that is taking place at VID and that the people must be warned. We also have some measures that we have put in place – like putting up some toll free numbers and also some suggestion boxes where you can bring in some suggestions on how to assist us - because you must understand that VID people are not doing this on their own. They are doing it in collaboration with a lot of compliance from those who want to get licences and also members of the driving schools.
So, a lot is being done but we also need support from you as the general public to assist us by giving us the information of those people who are involved in corrupt activities. It is not all VID officials who are involved in this corruption, but it is some individuals and the most worrying issue is that they are doing it because it is being instigated by the people who want to obtain licences.
VID Mr. Speaker Sir, in order for the Ministry to curb the corruption that is taking place at VID; 80% of the examination for the learner driver is done in full glare of everybody who wants to visit any
VID depot. Eighty percent of the whole process is done there and only 20% is done outside the VID Depot, on the road. So, we are doing as much as we can in order to make sure that the examination is done transparently but that corruption cannot be eradicated by the Ministry on its own. If everybody cooperates, then we can be able to eradicate the corruption that is taking place at the V.I.D. Thank you.
HON. MARIDADI: The issue of V.I.D is almost like a national disaster. I was hoping that the Minister could probably issue a
Ministerial Statement…
THE HON. SPEAKER: What is your supplementary question?
HON. MARIDADI: My supplementary question is that, is it not possible for the Minister to issue a Ministerial Statement seeing that this is as a national disaster? Thank you.
HON. DR. GUMBO: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I want to thank you Hon. Maridadi for that question. I will do that. There is no problem for me to do that, I will definitely do that. I have been making these statements. If they are not enough, I will actually come up with a
Ministerial Statement, and I can do that. Thank you.
HON. MANDIPAKA: Mr. Speaker Sir, I do not know if we have the Leader of the House, I wanted to ask my question to the Leader of the House. I stand guided Mr. Speaker Sir.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Mandipaka, the Leader of Government Business in the House is Hon. Ziyambi Ziyambi. I have read out his apology, so why do you want to create an awkward situation? - [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] - Order, order!
*HON. MUPFUMI: Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister of Labour and Social Welfare. What is Government policy as regards the families that are all over the country that no longer have breadwinners like the orphaned households and widows? They used to receive $20 in the past, after an assessment would have been done by the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, but this has since been discontinued. I thank you.
*THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE
(HON. KAGONYE): Thank you Mr. Speaker. Thank you Hon.
Mupfumi for such a pertinent question. The Government has got ways to assist such vulnerable people in several forms. There was the issue of $20, these are called harmonised cash transfers and this is still being disbursed to people. Assessments are done by the officials from the Social Welfare Department to identify which group of vulnerable people requires such assistance. At the moment, they are receiving up to $50 which is in line with the assessment done for each family depending also on the number of vulnerable dependents in the household.
Over and above that, they are receiving food in the form of maize, school fees payment for children’s and clothes, depending on their needs. Those that are ill are also given Assisted Medical Treatment
Orders (MTO’s), documents that enable them to seek medication. So, the Government is continuing to ensure that people who are vulnerable are assisted and that they are not found wanting. This includes little children that are orphaned, widows and those people who are living with disabilities and those that are vulnerable. I thank you.
*HON. MUPFUMI: Thank you Minister for such a response. I went to my constituency in Dangamvura, Chikanga last week; there is nothing like that. These groups of people are actually suffering and vulnerable children are not going to school; they are being sent back home. Maybe, you should also task a single member of the army for each school to ensure that children are not sent away from schools.
*THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Mupfumi, what does the army have to do with Social Welfare?
*HON. MUPFUMI: I am talking in terms of the restoration of legacy. If teachers are advised that children should not be sent back home, it is my plea that soldiers be stationed at schools so as to ensure that children are not sent back home – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.]-
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Member, withdraw that statement regarding the soldiers because the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare has officers responsible for that. So, we do not need interference by the military.
*HON. KAGONYE: Thank you Mr. Speaker. The money that has been given to for school fees through BEAM for school children, we are aware that there were problems in the schools; they were not accepting vulnerable children in schools without upfront payment for fees because Government through my Ministry was owing a lot of money to these schools. End of last year, the Treasury gave us a lot of money to clear the outstanding debt. At the moment, majority of schools have been paid off their debts and are accepting children under BEAM. If the problem persists in specific areas, let us know so that we can intervene. An amount of US$7m was disbursed to us by
Government for the harmonised cash transfer such a programme so that our social partners can also augment that amount. It is the first time that such a large amount of money was disbursed to us, which means the Government is aware that the number of people who require assistance has increased.
If this information does not reach all areas, I urge Hon. Members to go to those areas to educate about the existing programmes and go to their nearest Social Welfare officers so that they get assistance. I thank you.
*HON. MUTSEYAMI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My
supplementary question is - what means have you put in place to ensure that this money gets to the rightful recipients. If we look at the problems and the level of corruption that has been obtaining in our country, what mechanisms have you put in place to ensure that the money gets to the rightful recipients?
*THE HON. SPEAKER: Order. The Hon. Minister spoke very
well. If there is a problem, you can go to the offices in the Social Welfare Ministry. If you are unhappy get in touch with her; she will deal with the matter – [HON. CHIBAYA: Kunoendeka vari right
zvekuti.] -
Hon. Mutseyami having stood up to ask a supplementary question.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, I have ruled on your
supplementary question, I cannot open debate.
HON. MLILO: On a point of privilege Hon. Speaker Sir.
THE HON. SPEAKER: What is your point of privilege?
HON. MLILO: My humble request is for the ...
THE HON. SPEAKER: I beg your pardon?
HON. MLILO: My humble request Mr. Speaker Sir, with all due
respect, is for the Minister of Labour and Social Welfare to...
THE HON. SPEAKER: You mentioned a point of privilege?
HON. MLILO: Yes, Mr. Speaker Sir.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Ask a supplementary question.
HON. MLILO: My question is therefore directed to the Hon.
Minister of Labour and Social Welfare. In all this that she has said, how do the disabled people fit in? I see in a lot of constituencies and a lot of towns that disabled people are not benefiting from such a fund and in her explanation, she did not articulate how they fit into the picture. She only spoke about people who are vulnerable, including the orphans and the widows and not the disabled people. I thank you.
HON. KAGONYE: Thank you Mr. Speaker. People living with
disabilities are included under the vulnerable members of society. They qualify to benefit. We actually have a fund that is dedicated specifically for people living with disability. From my own assessment, the challenge that I am seeing is lack of information on those members who are disabled. The majority of them are there at home and are not aware of these facilities. So my appeal is for the Members of Parliament and the public in general to inform those people that are living with disability that there are such facilities that are available within
Government so that they can come and also access the benefit – [HON.
MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] -
*HON. CHIBAYA: My question is directed to the Minister of Labour and Social Welfare, Hon. Kagonye. What plans do you have for pensioners as regards to increasing their monthly pensions? When are you going to increase their pensions?
*THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE
(HON. KAGONYE): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. Pensioners amounts are worked and determined by actuarials scientists who are experts in that field. They will come up with the minimum amount that should be given to the pensioner in line with their monthly contributions at the time when they were still working. This is dependent upon the workings done. Previously, the pensioners’ salaries were increased from US$60 to US$80 per month. These amounts are reviewed periodically, considering the state of the economy. Currently, they are receiving US$80 per month. I thank you.
*HON. CHIBAYA: Mr. Speaker Sir. I am glad that this august House can ask questions to Ministers and that the entire nation will be watching. The former Minister did promise to increase pension amounts from US$60 to US$80 and all the pensioners were listening. We were told that by the end of 2017, it would be raised from US$100 to US$150.
It is....
THE HON. SPEAKER: Ask a question Hon. Member.
*HON. CHIBAYA: You said that you have increased the amount to US$80 but it was once stated that the amount would be increased to US$150. What do you say to this contradiction and how is the public going to view this? I thank you Mr. Speaker.
*HON. KAGONYE: I was asking the former Minister what Hon.
Chibaya is referring to. Initially when she said this, she said the amount was going to be increased from US$60 to US$80 which was done and that it was her expectation that at the next review, it will be increased to US$100. Plans are underway to review and thereafter, we will know to what amount the pensions will be increased to. I thank you.
Hon. Chibaya having stood up to ask yet another supplementary question.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, you cannot ask two
supplementary questions.
HON. P. D. SIBANDA: My supplementary pertains to the
underprivileged in our society. We see a lot of children on our streets begging, making even driving very dangerous on the roads. What efforts is the Ministry doing to ensure that the lives of those young children on the streets who are abused by being used to beg is mended, so that they can be incorporated once again into society and be good citizens of this country in the future. Thank you.
THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE
(HON. KAGONYE): Thank you Honourable for the question. The Ministry has been doing a lot in terms of planning for the children to take them away from our streets. The unfortunate thing is, all the efforts that were being done to take them off have not been enough to keep them in homes or reconcile them with their families. So right now, we are going to launch a programme called ‘Take them off the streets’.
On that programme, we are trying to come up with ways that are acceptable to the children themselves that will actually assist them to be integrated into society, otherwise we are equally concerned with the number of children that are on the streets and we are still looking at possible ways that will permanently remove them from the streets. Once we come up with those strategies in partnership with our social partners, we will actually inform the House on the progress. Thank you.
HON. MANGAMI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question is directed to the Minister of Local Government, Public Works and
National Housing. What is Government policy regarding the allowances that are given to village heads and what is the prescribed methodology of paying such allowances?
THE MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT, PUBLIC
WORKS AND NATIONAL HOUSING (HON. J. MOYO): Thank
you Mr. Speaker Sir. Village heads are being paid an allowance and this allowance is on a monthly basis. We have had problems since they were not accessing enough cash. We have now devised a methodology so that they are paid through Ecocash and at present, we are above 75% of all the village heads in the country, paying them through Ecocash. We want to make sure that every village head is paid through Ecocash so that the trouble they have to come to the district administrators’ offices is reduced and they can access their funds through their Ecocash. I thank you.
HON. ZINDI: Hon. Speaker, my question is directed to the Minister of Labour and Social Welfare. Realising the fact that people in constituencies regard Members of Parliament as the face of Government, what measures do you intend to put in place to make sure that your Ministry officials liaise with Members of Parliament in terms of submitting names of vulnerable people in our constituencies so that there is that interface and interaction with Members of Parliament, ensuring that the vulnerable members have submitted their names to the Ministry?
I thank you.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, I will protect the Minister. It is the responsibility of Members of Parliament to liaise with Government offices, the community and the local authorities to identify the problem areas.
HON. ZINDI: Supplementary question Hon. Speaker.
THE HON. SPEAKER: There is no supplementary. Do your work. As Members of Parliament, do your work.
HON. ZINDI: I take it with protest Hon. Speaker.
HON. KANENGONI-MALINGA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question goes to the Minister of Labour and Social Welfare. Does your Ministry have an early warning mechanism in relation to possible drought so that you can prepare to feed people in the eventuality that there is a drought? If so, are there such plans for this year, given that the rains were not that great and there might be potential drought?
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. Again, the Hon. Minister is protected. That question goes to the Minister responsible for Climate
Change. The responsible Minister is the Minister for Environment, Water and Climate.
HON. KANENGONI-MALINGA: Mr. Speaker Sir, the question
was related to feeding of people. So since their Ministry gives food to vulnerable groups, the idea would be that there would be vulnerable groups if there is a drought. That was the question.
THE HON. SPEAKER: No, your question was on mitigation of drought.
HON. KANENGONI-MALINGA: Yes, but in relation to food.
THE HON. SPEAKER: No.
HON. TOFFA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question goes to the Minister of Labour and Social Welfare. I would like to know what her Ministry has put in place with regards to transport for the vulnerable - seeing the Ministry prescribes that ZUPCO is the only mode of transport that the Ministry uses and yet it has been defunct for many years, including some areas where ZUPCO does not go. It leaves the beneficiaries, including the disabled, begging for transport. So, I would like to know what the Ministry is doing to make sure that transport is provided. I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE
(HON. KAGONYE): Thank you Mr. Speaker and thank you Hon. Member for the question. Our Ministry assists by issuing travel warrants to the vulnerable. However, the challenge that we have been facing is that most transporters refuse to use the travel warrants. They prefer cash, but on a case by case basis, we can always analyse and assist according to the need. Thank you.
HON. TOFFA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. It becomes very difficult for the vulnerable to access information of where to go, case by case. Can the Ministry not come up with a deliberate programme or certain transporter that would provide the transport because if the Ministry says case by case, then for people that do not have access to information, it actually complicates the whole situation? Thank you.
HON. KAGONYE: What I have said is a matter of policy. We deal with public transport. Those are the ones that normally accept travel warrants. However, the reason why I said case by case is because we do not have a universal transporter for the whole country. It then becomes difficult for us to liaise with transporters who are not Government transporters unless if you know a specific case, maybe we can talk to the private transporter in that particular area. If ZUPCO or any other form of public transport was efficient, then this problem was not going to arise.
ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE HON. SPEAKER
APOLOGIES RECEIVED FROM MINISTERS
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have received further apologies from
Hon. Minister of Health and Child Care – [AN HON. MEMBER:
Haasati ambouya, he is a stranger in Parliament.] – Order, order. Hon.
Muchinguri-Kashiri, Minister of Environment, Water and Climate; Hon.
Minister Chitando, Minister of Mines and Mining Development; Vice
President responsible for the Ministry of Defence, Security and War
Veterans; Minister of Finance and Economic Development ; Minister of Industry, Commerce and Enterprise Development, Hon. Minister Bimha and Minister of Sport, Arts and Recreation; Hon. Kazembe Kazembe.
That is the list in addition to the one I had indicated earlier on.
HON. MUTSEYAMI: Putting across an apology is one thing but it has to be noted that the Hon. Minister of Health and Child Care, Hon. Dr. Parirenyatwa is a stranger to this House –[HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – The last time he came to this Parliament was when he came just to give a statement. That was it. I have been here for five years but I have hardly seen him more than five or six times. It is something that has to be noted. It is so unhealthy and it is so sad bearing in mind the challenges that we have in this country; he is hardly here.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. Hon. Mutseyami, we will
bring the issue to the notice of the Hon. Minister.
HON. SARUWAKA: My question is directed to the Minister of
Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, Hon. Moyo. Section 281 of the Constitution clearly spells out that traditional leaders must not be members of any particular political party. This means that they cannot speak on behalf of any political party. They cannot further the interest of any political party. I would like to understand what the Hon. Minister is doing to rein in traditional leaders who come out openly that they support a political party – in this case ZANU PF. We have the example of the President of Chiefs; Chief Charumbira who has clearly stated that he supports ZANU PF, yet he is continuing in his role as a traditional leader. What is his Ministry doing to make sure that all traditional leaders are non-partisan?
THE MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT, PUBLIC
WORKS AND NATIONAL HOUSING (HON. J. MOYO): Mr.
Speaker Sir, as the Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, I am not the supervisor or controller of the constitutional provisions and it is not the Ministry’s policy to look into the issue of chiefs pronouncing themselves about their political persuasions.
HON. SARUWAKA: Mr. Speaker Sir, I did not understand what the Hon. Minister said. Is he implying that he is not the Minister responsible for traditional leaders? Do they fall under a separate Ministry from his? If he is the Minister in charge of traditional leaders, then it is incumbent upon him to make sure that they stick to the provisions of the Constitution. In this particular case, traditional leaders, are coming out openly in violation of the Constitution. Is the Minister not charged with making sure that he upholds the provisions of the Constitution? In this case, the behaviour of traditional leaders; why is he not taking any action when they blatantly violate the Constitution?
HON. J. MOYO: The appointment and disciplinary procedures for chiefs is now the responsibility of the Provincial Assembly of Chiefs as well as the National Assembly of Chiefs. This is provided for in the Constitution. Nowhere does the Constitution allow me to discipline any chief in this country at present.
*HON. ZWIZWAI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir, for allowing me to ask a supplementary question to the Hon. Minister July Moyo. Hon. Minister, you rounded up all the chiefs country-wide under the programme that was being done by the Government programme of buying vehicles. You took them to the headquarters of Midlands Province – [HON. DR. GUMBO: Zvine basa rei?] – It is important because we marched together. It is important and pertinent. We should be proud of one another. We marched together on the 18th of November 2017, and we removed Mugabe together. So, we should not ill-treat each other. The new era is not for one person. We will not allow this to happen. We would have used words for the incident to describe it in another way. If you want to right the wrongs in this country, we will have to do it together. You rounded up chiefs and you gathered them at a party Headquarters and you gave them cars.
As the President was saying, we are going to have free and fair elections, do you now want us as political parties to start demonstrating against President Mnangagwa now? If we want to make sure that the country is right, we should be honest enough to honour up and say we did wrong, we will take up corrective measures. We took steps together, we are in the new dispensation together; we will hold elections and congratulate the winner. I thank you.
* HON. J. MOYO: Thank you Mr. Speaker for Hon. Zwizwai’s
question. In the Midlands where the chiefs gathered to meet the President, that is not a ZANU PF building. It belongs to the Midlands
Development Association and includes everyone who is in the Midlands. That is how it was constructed. As to who can use it, it is neither here nor there. If the Salvation Army wants to use it, they can and anyone is free to use it inasmuch as ZANU PF used it. If a person does sloganeers – whoever is possessed with spirits – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] - If we are to say that the Minister should rein them in, the Minister will have problems. If there are those that are not happy about what happened to chiefs, chiefs have their National Council of Chiefs, they have Provincial Assemblies of Chiefs, and so, you should take your complaints to those fora so that these issues can be attended to. I thank you.
*HON. MAONDERA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I am surprised
that the Hon. Minister says that he is not responsible for the chiefs, but in his Ministry, there is a director who is responsible for the welfare of traditional leaders. Their Vote is under his Ministry. How does he not know that the chiefs can be disciplined by him? Why does their Vote fall under his Ministry and have a full director responsible for running the issue of chiefs, yet you are flouting the laws of this country?
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order! The Constitution must be read wholesomely. Notwithstanding the quoted Section 281, you have to read the Constitution also in terms of Section 287, which speaks to the
Integrity and Ethics Committee of the Council of Chiefs. In subsection (c), one of the responsibilities of that Committee and I quote, ‘is to deal with complaints against traditional leaders’. Thank you.
*HON. PARADZA: Thank you Hon. Speaker. My question is directed to the Hon. Minister of Labour and Social Welfare. The whole country is crying as to when they are going to get assistance from the Government because the crop was a complete write-off as a result of insufficient rains. To be more precise, when is the Government going to assist such people?
*THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, the question by Hon. Paradza – we are not yet out of the rain season. People have not harvested and there has not been an assessment of which areas are suffering from the drought. So, your question does not arise.
*HON. KATSIRU: Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing. All councils that are in this country, none is able to stand alone and since they cannot stand alone, if you look at their books of accounts, they show that the majority of the money that they are owed is being owed by Government. When are you going to pay these councils their money or are they never going to get their money? I thank you.
*THE MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT, PUBLIC
WORKS AND NATIONAL HOUSING (HON. J. MOYO): Mr.
Speaker Sir, Hon. Katsiru’s question is two pronged that the councils can no longer stand on their own and that is true. In some ways, it is because some of the powers that the councils had are no longer being used by them. They were now being used by certain ministries. So, the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development came in this august House and showed that the councils can now raise revenue on their own before it goes to any other Government department.
On the second question where he said - is Government going to pay the outstanding debts to the councils? The person who is in a better position to comment is the Minister of Finance and Economic Development. If he has been specific for what is being owed, I would have been in a better position to answer the question. Maybe, it will be best if you were to put your question in writing so that there can be a better response to his question. I thank you.
*HON. KATSIRU: Mr. Speaker Sir, it is clear that all Ministry departments had water supplies for years and this water as well as the rates have not been paid for. There has been a lot of debt accumulated from the non-payment of these rates and water bills. In their books, they still say US$56 million is still being owed by the people and three quarters of that amount is owed or has been accrued by several or different Government departments. As the Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, it should be in his interest to know that the councils have been paid so that they can work properly. I thank you.
HON. J. MOYO: Mr. Speaker Sir, I have heard the Hon.
Member’s question. Unless and until I am given the specific councils, up until I know all of them, I am unable to answer that question – [HON.
MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] -
THE HON. SPEAKER: I will help you Hon. Minister. The
Auditor General’s report indicates the problem that Hon. Katsiru has brought to our attention and I think Hon. Katsiru can put his question in written form. The Hon. Minister can refer to the Auditor-General’s report and he will be able to answer comprehensively. Thank you.
*HON. MACHINGAUTA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. Hon.
Minister Moyo has accepted that local authorities cannot function on their own. My question to him is, is there any hope that these local authorities are going to be paid by Government, especially the one stated in Section 301 of the Constitution that says 5% of the National Budget should be disbursed to local governments? Are they going to access that 5% so that they can offer good service delivery?
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. MARUMAHOKO): I
thought the Chair who was here before I took over had made a ruling that the Hon. Member can put the question in writing so that the
Minister can respond. Is it the same thing?
*HON. MACHINGAUTA: My supplementary is clear Hon.
Chair and there were specifics that were required so that I needed the research but I am saying since he has conceded that the local authorities cannot stand on their own, in light of the constitutional requirement of Section 301 that they should receive 5% of the National Budget, is there any hope that the said local authorities are going to receive the 5% as stipulated in the Constitution so that there is good service delivery?
HON. J. MOYO: Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the Hon. Member
for asking that question. It is true that our Constitution more than any other constitution that I know of has given our local authorities the power to raise taxes both in the urban and rural areas. We have not just given them power to tax in the Constitution but in the subsidiary legislation, they have been told how to tax and follow up on those who are not paying their taxes. This, we are emphasising to all our local authorities so that they can get maximum accruals from their taxation.
As regards to Section 301, the pronouncement of at least 5% is only after Government and the local authorities have gone into a thorough revenue sharing exercise to understand what ought to be collected by central government and what is collectable by local government and to see where the gaps are, and then you can apply the 5%. In some cases, in order to equalize so that we do not have certain areas of our communities remaining behind and others moving ahead, the tax base of all our local authorities is not the same.
So that 5% yes, we need it to be given to local authorities and I think the Hon. Member will know that the Minister of Finance in his Finance Bill this year admitted that he was going to apply that 5%, come next year. We have already started working on the modalities so that the 5%, when it comes, can be given in accordance with some form of fiscal regime that we will have created. We are working at that and I want to thank him for asking that question.
HON. M. MAWERE: My question is directed to the Minister of Tourism and Hospitality Industry, Hon. Mupfumira. Hon. Minister, what is the policy of your Ministry as regards the mushrooming of shebeens and houses that have been turned into lodges and at the same time where prostitution is taking place. What is your position on that one?
THE MINISTER OF TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY
INDUSTRY (HON. MUPFUMIRA): I want to thank the Hon.
Member implying that shebeens are tourist attractions. What we are in the process of doing as a Ministry is to ensure that all tourist activities, shebeens, lodges or whatever are registered with the Ministry through ZTA. So, we have the next two months to register such. I would urge Hon. Members to advise us of any lodges you might find mushrooming in the residential areas so that we register them. Once we register, we will be able to find out what activities they are carrying out and if they are not lawful, the law will take care of whatever is unlawful. I am talking about registration.
HON. M. MAWERE: My concern Mr. Speaker is that the loose moral will break hell and hence, our culture will be eroded. I know it can be tourism but the aspect of eroding our culture is un-African. Thank you.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order! Hon. Member, I
thought the Minister has already addressed that by saying that all those institutions must be registered and they will make sure that they comply with the Tourism Policy.
HON. M. MAWERE: I stand guided Mr. Speaker Sir.
HON. GABBUZA: My question is directed to the Minister of Energy and Power Development. Mr. Speaker, we listened with a lot of anticipation when the South African Government announced the reduction of fuel prices as a response to the global decline of crude oil prices and as a response to the strengthening of the US$. Now, as Zimbabwe, are we seeing a likelihood of a reduction in the oil prices in response to the same declines on the world market in the near future?
THE MINISTER OF ENERGY AND POWER
DEVELOPMENT (HON. S. K. MOYO): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
I want to thank the Hon. Member for his question. All I can say is, I wish that could happen but as a Ministry, we are quite aware that we are making every effort to make our fuels as affordable as possible. This is why, not long back, I did make an announcement that the pump prices of petrol and diesel were going down for a simple reason that the excise duty which falls under the Ministry of Finance, we had negotiated with them to reduce that area. The problem we have at the moment is that our excise duty is still very high. The reason I understand was that there was no way Government could really meet its obligations without increasing the excise duty on this particular sector.
We seem to be seeing developments which are giving us some kind of joy in that a number of competitors are coming in terms of particularly the supply of fuel. We, ourselves as a Ministry, our own subsidiary called NOIC that was formerly NOCZIM is increasing its capacity. As recently as this week, we NOIC we bought Trek, some of you know Trek. We want to see the increase of our outlets in terms of Petro Trade and indeed, in terms of Trek that we have just purchased. However, there are a number of competitors that are showing signs that certainly, we are likely to see our fuels and oils going down.
We pray that happens because that has multiple factors in terms of results. You also have industries expanding if fuel is reduced or oil in general is reduced. You will also see a number of economic activities taking place. I want to say to the Hon. Member, his question is pertinent and we shall follow of course, statutorily the world prices of oil and go along with that trend in terms of our own activities in the country. I want to say that is our biggest hope and we shall monitor the situation as necessary as possible. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
Questions without notice were interrupted by the TEMPORARY
SPEAKER in terms of Standing Order No. 64.
HON. NDEBELE: Mr. Speaker Sir, I rise to make the most honourable thing to propose that we put taxpayers’ money into good use by extending time for Oral Questions, given that a lot of Cabinet Ministers are not in today.
HON. NDUNA: I second.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: By how many minutes?
HON. NDEBELE: I propose 45 minutes Mr. Speaker Sir or perhaps 30 minutes.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Hon. Member, you are not
being sincere. We still have to attend to written questions. Let me rule that we extend by ten minutes.
HON. GABBUZA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the
Hon. Minister’s answer. My supplementary is Zimbabwe Energy and Regulatory Authority (ZERA), as a Government policy, has the mandate to recommend to Government the price of fuel and energy based on their observation of the fluctuation of the oils on the international market. I wish to know from the Minister if ZERA has proposed or recommended any price to the Ministry given their observation on fluctuation of the international prices.
HON. S. K. MOYO: Mr. Speaker, I again want to thank the Hon. Member for his question. It is true that ZERA monitors fuel prices on a daily basis. If there is any development in terms of international prices,
ZERA also plays the same tune but sometimes by only one cent because much of the prices, as I said, were affected by the excise duty. If it was not the excise duty, I believe ZERA would even do more than what it is. We are in discussions with my counterpart, the Minister of Finance to see whether we can sacrifice some of this squeezing which is happening in terms of our excise duty to bring down our prices. Certainly, we monitor that on a daily basis. ZERA gives me a report daily on what has taken place. If you look at our prices, almost every week or every other two weeks, you will find that there is a slight change, but not very meaningful but minimum change because of the developments in international prices. I thank you.
HON. NDEBELE: Mr. Speaker, I am glad that the Minister, in his response, mentioned Petro Trade. I want to find out from the Minister, what the intelligence behind the policy of Government is in getting involved in the retail of fuel directly to consumers. Is that not crowding out private companies from selling petrol and at that rate, are we not going to see a Government that opens sadza restaurants?
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order. Hon. Member, may
you go back to where you were standing. Hon. Member, if you ask a question, be serious. May you withdraw the sadza part of your question?
HON. NDEBELE: If you find it so offensive, I recant that.
HON. S. K. MOYO: Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the Hon. Member for his question. Government has a responsibility to protect its citizens from exploitation. If we leave the entire market in the hands of monopolies, you would find that the price of petrol tomorrow will be $5 per litre and others will go to $6 or whatever price. Certainly, the country will be at standstill. Therefore, it is necessary that Government also plays a part to monitor the prices of this very important commodity. If we do not do that, there is nothing else that will remain moving. So, I do not think it will be fair to say Government must not be seen to be participating. I do not think it will be fair to say Government must not be seen to be participating in this area which is very crucial and is a security area actually. So, you cannot afford to ignore and leave people on their own and say let Total or any other private company do as they please. We cannot do that. So, we are going to see an increase actually in terms of competition, even with Government on this area in terms of Petro Trade or as I have said, the new ones who have just purchased.
So, if there is any abuse of this particular area in terms of prices, ZERA actually monitors every day what goes on in the market and we will ensure that those companies which push up their prices randomly or as they wish are brought to book. So, I think we are going to continue with that policy for quite some time. Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
HON. NDEBELE: Is the Hon. Minister therefore suggesting Hon. Speaker, that the security nature and interest of Government within the retail of fuel is not well taken care of by NOIC? Is he also implying that the presence of Petro Trade stations that are dotted across the country is a control measure for fuel pricing?
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: It is exactly what he said.
HON. NDEBELE: I am trying to understand the economic sense behind that argument, if he may spell it out for us as well as for the nation because it defies all text book economics.
HON. K. MOYO: Mr. Speaker, I want to repeat that Government has a responsibility to look after its citizens and that responsibility includes this particular sector. We cannot just look back and shy away from our responsibilities because in the past – [HON. NDEBELE: Inaudible interjection.] – Mr. Speaker, if the Hon. Member wants to answer the question, he is welcome, I believe through you…
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Hon. Minister, address the
Chair, I will deal with it.
HON. S. K. MOYO: Thank you Sir. I am only saying Mr. Speaker, we are not saying people must go out of the industry. We are promoting competition and we are saying where there is competition, there is obviously some kind of stability in terms of these prices. However, if there is no competition and we leave it to anybody who can or cannot, we shall find ourselves in difficulties. So, we shall continue with that policy until we find ourselves in a situation where we can say, protection is sufficient.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Well explained Hon. Minister.
ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS WITH NOTICE
RETENTION ALLOWANCE FOR DOCTORS IN DISTRICT HOSPITALS
- HON. MANGAMI asked the Minister of Health and Child Care whether there are plans to reintroduce a retention allowance for doctors at district hospitals.
THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE
(HON. KAGONYE) on behalf of the MINISTER OF HEALTH AND CHILD CARE (HON. DR. PARIRENYATWA): Thank you Mr.
Speaker Sir. Thank you Hon. Mangami for the question. In response, Health Worker Retention Scheme was set up in 2009 with the support of development partners to complement Government efforts to remunerate and retain its workers.
Health Worker Retention Scheme contributed immensely to the presence of motivated health workers at all levels of the health systems, especially doctors in district hospitals. Development partners have continued to contribute financial resources to the health worker retention scheme at decreasing rates citing limited resources.
One of the conditions of support towards the Health Worker Retention Scheme was that the levels of financial support would decline as from 2012 on the understanding that Government would gradually increase the levels of remuneration for its employees. The Government has not been able to improve salaries for all its employees due to limited fiscal space.
Development partners, including the Global Fund, went ahead and gradually reduced the levels of retention allowances paid to health workers over the years until December, 2017 when the Health
Development Fund (HDF) stopped funding the Health Worker Retention Scheme citing limited resources. The Global Fund continues to support health worker retention at reduced rates which are not very attractive.
The HDF is now supporting Results Based Financing which channels resources to health facilities, 25% of which can be used for health worker retention of the staff at the respective institutions or districts.
The levels of retention will not be as high as when the scheme started.
Currently, a doctor in the district will receive $88.65 with effect from January, 2018 from the health worker retention (Global Fund), down from $682 when the scheme started.
The Ministry continues to lobby for continued support to health worker retention, which is sensitive to the differences in working environments and maintains rather than destroys team work. Health workers in difficult to reach areas like Siakobvu in Mashonaland West and Gokwe North District Hospital should have higher retention rates to be able to attract and retain health workers.
It is sustainable for the Government to improve conditions of service for its employees for the doctors and all other health workers to be attracted and retained in district hospitals and all levels of care.
Thank you.
PROVISION OF RETICULATION SYSTEM TO
HOUSEHOLDS IN NKETA CONSTITUENCY
- HON. MASUKU asked the Minister of Local Government,
Public Works and National Housing to explain;
- why the Bulawayo City Council is failing to provide the reticulation system to households in Ward 26 Emganwini in Nketa Constituency.
- why the residents of millennium houses in Ward 26 and
Emnganwini Houses in Ward 26 at Emganwini are not given a waiver to offset the rentals that they have been paying ever since they were built as it is their view that the City Council has over benefitted from such payments.
- why the City of Bulawayo is not giving home ownership for free to residents of millennium houses at Emganwini areas and to further state whether or not there is a deliberate attempt to ensure that a certain percentage is reserved for the locals.
THE MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT, PUBLIC
WORKS AND NATIONAL HOUSING (HON. J. MOYO): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I thank the Hon. Member for asking the question on why the Bulawayo City Council is failing to provide the reticulation system to households in Ward 26 Emganwini in Nketa Constituency.
Mr. Speaker Sir, let me inform this House that in Nketa Suburb, there are a few challenges. Servicing of the 97 high density stands began in January, 2012. The project was practically completed in 2014 with the developer, Branch Metro making preparations for handover. A final inspection of water, sewer reticulation and roads revealed that minor attention was required on faulty main water valves, testing of sewer line, roads and drainage before the project could be handed over to councils.
The findings of the inspection carried out were as follows: - water was ready 98% but four valves needed replacement. Sewer was ready 99% but testing of sewer line is outstanding. Roads were ready 97% but contractor needed to attend to drainage system. After the passing on of
Mr. Tshabangu who was the Project Director and later his daughter, Mr.
- Saidi was left in charge of the project. However, council has since failed to locate Mr. Saidi and therefore engaging the project to beneficiaries to complete the outstanding snags and handover.
Below are the outstanding works that need attention.
- Water replacement of the four non-functional water valves
- Road, opening of some sections of the drainage to facilitate safe draining of storm water.
- Sewer; only testing was pending, otherwise the sewer was inspected to engineering satisfaction.
The way forward is that the Project Resident Committee has been advised to organise for completion of the outstanding issues so that the project is handed over to council.
(b) Mr. Speaker, the Millennium Housing Development was built as a social scheme for residence who could not afford mortgage facilities or build their own houses from other incomes. These were drawn mainly from Esdojiwe which was a dormitory or a hostel kind of accommodation and the building and concept had been condemned. Some of the beneficiaries came from councils’ waiting lists. The scheme was funded from a loan from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe and the rentals generated from this scheme were meant to create a revolving fund where council will be able to service the loan and continue building more rented accommodation.
Most of the beneficiaries were failing to pay the rentals, making it difficult for council to continue building more units. Council resolved to convert the houses to home ownership in 2015. The price to be paid was discounted to take into account the number of years a beneficiary had been in occupation of the house. The beneficiaries were given 10 years to pay. The city has not unduly benefited as alleged, as the cost of those houses has been discounted.
(c ) As stated earlier Mr. Speaker, council has to repay the loan. In addition, there are costs linked to home ownership, like survey costs which are factored into what is expected to be paid by the beneficiaries. Council has a policy of disposal of rented houses to sitting tenants. The houses are sold at a discount based on the number of years of occupation as follows:- First five years is discounted at two percent; next 10 years discounted at three percent for each year of occupation. This means if you have occupied the house for 15 years, the discount would be two percent for the first five years - equals 10, plus three percent for 10 years - equals 30, which gives a total discount of 40%.
The discount applies to improvements only and the land is not discounted. Now, for one to get a discount of 100%, one must have occupied the house for at least 30 years. In view of the foregoing, none of the millennium beneficiaries have been in occupation for 30 years. Therefore, 100% discount rate is inapplicable. Thus, to the extent that a certain undiscounted percentage remains, the occupant must pay. Besides, as a matter of principle, there must always be an exchange of value in such transaction for sustainability purposes. I thank you Mr.
Speaker.
HON. MASUKU: Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question to the Hon. Minister is - what recovery mechanisms does council have to the contractors in the event of failing to complete the contract?
HON. J. MOYO: Mr. Speaker, any contractor before they sign a contract, there are remedial questions that must be put in the contract such as failure to complete the job and we expect that the council will follow their contractual obligations with the contractor in order to recover the money.
POLICY ON REMUNERATION OF ONE PARTY IN CASES
OF DISPUTED CHIEFTAINSHIP
- HON. S. MPOFU asked the Minister of Local Government,
Public Works and National Housing to inform the House:-
- whether or not it is Government policy to remunerate one of the parties in cases of disputed chieftainships while the matter is yet to be resolved and if so;
- whether such a position does not border on bias, prejudice and outright compromise on the other party which is not privileged to receive such payments?
THE MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT, PUBLIC WORKS AND NATIONAL HOUSING (HON. J. MOYO): Thank
you Mr. Speaker Sir. Let me start by thanking the Hon. Member for asking that question. However, let me inform this august House that Section 284 (3) of the Constitution provides that remuneration of traditional leaders must not be reduced while he/she holds or acts in the office concerned. Government policy is to remunerate all chiefs appointed by the President in terms of Section 3 (4) of the Traditional Leaders Act 29:17. As long as the office bearer is not removed by the appointing authority who is the President or court, he/ she is entitled to remuneration. The allowance can only be ceased upon removal, either by the appointing authority or by a court in the case of the dispute. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
HON. MAJOME: Point of clarification! In the previous session on questions, the Hon. Minister indicated that he is unable to answer questions pertaining to traditional leaders because his Ministry has no mandate at all whatsoever. I happen to notice that the asker happened to be from the Opposition. I happen to notice that in this particular question, a member of the ruling party has asked the Hon. Minister pertaining to policy and the functions of traditional leaders and the Hon. Minister has very diligently answered the question. So, my question is, how is it that the Hon. Minister on one hand is unable to answer questions pertaining to traditional leaders because as he rightly says, the Constitution requires that their office be independent. But, how is it that when a Member of the ruling party asked a question he answers it? As a Member of this august House, I would very much want to understand how the Hon. Minister is able to deal very differently with the same issue. He either answers questions on policy pertaining to traditional leaders or he does not because it would then look like, if it is in the party’s interest …
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Member, this
session is for questions – so, may we proceed.
HON. MARIDADI: Mr. Speaker, I think the Hon. Member
Majome has a very…
THE TEMPPORARY SPEAKER: Order, please take your seat.
I did not recognise you.
HON. MARIDADI: Okay, please recognise me soon.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order, Hon. Majome, when
the Minister responded in the first instance, the matter was not related to what is being discussed now. This is why the Chair who was here before me said that those matters were related to the Chiefs’ Council.
So, it is different from what you are trying to say.
HON. MAJOME: Mr. Speaker Sir, I thank you for your attention but I want to believe possibly that we need to go through what the Hon. Minister said because I was listening very attentively. The general tenor of the Hon. Minister’s response was that all matters pertaining to traditional leadership are matters that his Ministry does not deal with as the Chiefs’ Council deals with it.
Similarly, the issues that have been asked by Hon. Mpofu are also matters that in terms of the Constitution, the Chiefs’ Council is also mandated to fulfill. So, he gave the impression that he does not deal with traditional leaders. It would appear like it is almost discrimination on the basis of political affiliation because I am having difficulty to understand how he is able to pick and choose which ones it is that he answers.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: I do not think that it is a matter of pick and choose. Hon. Minister, would you want to answer?
HON. J. MOYO: Thank you Hon. Speaker. Hon. Member, I am
sure that it is very clear and the ruling by the Speaker was correct. I refused to answer questions dealing with disciplining of chiefs because that is taken care of by the Constitution. The Speaker read about how you channel your complaints and about the integrity of the chiefs, that is a different matter but, administrative matters that deal with chiefs, I have to deal with them. Because, even the Council of Chiefs when it comes to appropriations, they are under my Ministry. Therefore, there is a difference. I cannot discipline any chief in terms of the law and it is very clear. That is what was supported by the Speaker in his ruling.
Thank you Mr. Speaker.
HON. MAJOME: Mr. Speaker Sir, in terms of the Constitution, the issue that the Hon. Minister has raised around appropriations to the traditional leaders are matters that are distinctly removed from the
Minister in terms of appropriation. If you will allow me to just read. ‘In terms of Section 301 (3) of the Constitution, it is categorically provided that separate estimates of revenue and expenditure must be given for each of the following; and paragraph (d), the Council of Chiefs”.
So, if the Hon. Minister is of the view that he is able to deal and transact with matters pertaining to, as he said, appropriation and administration, when the Constitution says that he does not, I would be very grateful as a Member of this august House to be educated on how it is so that I would know how to deal with matters of traditional leadership because it is a very uneven way of doing things. I want to believe that possibly, going over the Hansard and seeing what exactly was said, it would just clarify issues. If the Hon. Minister can answer
Hon. Mpofu’s question, I believe that he should be able to answer also
Hon. Saruwaka’s question. Sauce for the goose should be sauce for the gander.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Hon. Majome, the Minister is
quite right. He said that there is a department in his Ministry that deals with the traditional chiefs and also, there is a separate entity that deals with the Chief’s Council. So, there is a difference there.
HON. MAJOME: Mr. Speaker Sir, I want to ask that we go over what was said. Mr. Speaker Sir, I think that this is a matter of great public importance. I would ask, with your indulgence, that possibly the issue receives further consideration because in his earlier response, he gave a response that indicates - because Hon. Maondera wanted to raise an issue that there is a director in his offices indeed for matters of traditional leaders. So, there are a lot of contradictions and inconsistencies.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Okay, let me put it this way. The Minister will go through the Hansard and see where the contradiction is as you say and then probably come further and clarify.
LOSS OF LIFE IN THE EVENT OF NATURAL DISASTERS SUCH AS VELD FIRES, FLOODS AND LANDSLIDES
13 HON. MAJOME asked the Minster of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing to state:
- strategies the Ministry has put in place to mitigate against loss of life in the event of natural disasters such as veld fires, floods and landslides;
- whether the Civil Protection Unit is adequately prepared to respond to natural disasters; and
- whether Government is considering setting up a fund to compensate victims who lose properties in natural disasters.
THE MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT, PUBLIC
WORKS AND NATIONAL HOUSING (HON. J. MOYO): Thank
you Mr. Speaker Sir. On the first part of Hon. Majome’s question Mr. Speaker Sir, may I inform the House the measures taken to mitigate against loss of life in the event of any disaster, inclusive of natural disasters such as veld fires, floods and landslides. These are regulated by the Civil Protection Act [Chapter 10:06, 1989].
The Act provides for the setting up of the Civil Protection
Organisation in the country and co-ordinate preparedness and response. Accordingly, civil protection structures which are multi-sectoral in nature and are coordinated by the directorate of Civil Protection Unit are in place across the country vis-à-vis at district level, provincial and national civil protection committees.
These structures prepare for any potential emergencies and disasters depending on the disaster risk profiles of the respective parts of the country. Current ongoing preparedness measures include;
- Disaster risk assessments, inclusive of mapping.
- Preparedness of planning for response.
- Education and awareness’ integration of disaster management into education.’
- Community based disaster risk management ‘dissemination of early warning information.’
- Review management of emergencies and disasters in order to glean lessons.
However, mitigation or prevention is largely a sectoral responsibility through the respective sector specific regulatory frameworks and policies.
- b) whether the Civil protection Unit is adequately prepared to respond to natural disasters.
Mr. Speaker, my response to this question is that the Civil Protection directorate has the regulatory framework and institutional arrangements in place. The expertise of the Civil Protection structures are available for management of disasters of any nature. Nevertheless, the major gaps include funding constraints, centralisation of equipment and expertise in major centres; leaving the periphery more exposed, communication challenges due to lack of network coverage for some parts of the country. A process is ongoing to review both policy and legislation with the view to address the gaps.
- C) Whether the Government is considering setting up a fund to compensate victims who lose properties in natural disasters;
Mr. Speaker Sir, Government has established the Civil Protection Fund for the management of disasters and provision of assistance as required. However, there are no plans for setting up a fund to compensate victims who lose properties in natural disasters because citizens have other avenues of recourse for compensation such as risk transfer mechanisms which include insurance cover by individuals. I thank you.
HON. MAJOME: I would like to thank the Hon. Minister for expounding on the measures the Government has in order to mitigate against natural disasters. I would like to ask the Hon. Minister about his last reference to the mechanisms that citizens have at their disposal; risk mitigation measures such as insurance. Has the Ministry assessed the adequacy and the accessibility to the general population of such measures in the insurance industry to ensure that there is sufficient provision in the insurance sector in order for citizens to be able to safeguard themselves from such natural disasters?
HON. J. MOYO: Mr. Speaker, I cannot say that there is adequate cover throughout the spectrum of disasters that we face. There are people who have, for instance, insurance cover for disasters that are caused by motor vehicles, others have disaster coverage for insurance on fire, and there are so many coverages. However, I cannot say that it is adequate, given the population that is mostly in the rural areas. So, there are gaps, as we have said, in terms of mitigation but assistance by Government agencies and supporting partners is well managed.
Only recently, this year, last week, we had a very large stakeholder meeting to make sure that at least that preparedness at national level going down to the local level is assured. I attended those meetings but certainly, we cannot cover in order to compensate the individual and we just hope that as the economy grows, most of our people can find mitigation which is through the insurance systems of the country. I thank you.
HON. MAJOME: Thank you Minister. Are you happy with the
levels of awareness that are given to citizens in order to save themselves because currently, there are reports, I believe seven members of one family who just perished from lightning who were reported to be under a tree. A long time ago, there used to be a lot of publicity programmes on radio and television warning citizens about disaster. So, in that same vein, is the Minister happy that the level of awareness and warnings to the citizens being done using the media is sufficient?
HON. J. MOYO: Mr. Speaker, while we have not done a survey
to see the total coverage but given the number of radio stations that are there now in the country and the programmes that I have seen coming out from the Civil Protection Unit and the cooperating partners they work with, they have tried very much to spread the word across, not just our television which happens to be one but across the number of radio stations that are now dotted out throughout the country.
The coverage that is in the newspapers is not adequate because it would need a lot of payment but I think if you listen to these community radios throughout, you will see that the Civil Protection Unit and their cooperating partners are pushing a lot targeting certain disasters that happen periodically. I think that coverage must continue to grow in order to mitigate and to prepare people for eventuality of these disasters.
I thank you.
HON. GABBUZA: I just want to understand from the Minister -
we see a lot of disparities in terms of level of assistance from Central Government when there is a natural disaster, it varies from place to place. In terms of policy, are there a specific number of people that must lose their lives before Government can be roped in at national level to assist? At one time, four people die, Government rushes in, 20 people die, Government rushes in, 20 people die in an accident and nowhere is Government seen. What really determines when Government comes - in terms of the number of lives lost?
HON. J. MOYO: Mr. Speaker Sir, disasters happen in all parts of the country and sometimes reliability on information coming from official channels is not enough. This is where again we appeal to Members of Parliament and community leaders, that is, councillors as well as chiefs, headmen and village heads to alert the authorities. So often people hear about a disaster when it is already over and we can only appeal that you inform the authorities and you as Members of Parliament, certainly have a duty to do so. When the disaster or cholera happened in Chegutu the Hon. Member was on the phone with the Minister of Health and also myself when I was even in Bulawayo, so we were able to activate the Civil Protection Units in various areas. So, I appeal that information and coverage will not be total but we rely on Members of Parliament to inform us when such disasters happen. I thank you.
BENEFICIARIES OF WOMEN GROUPS AND INDIVIDUALS
FROM LOANS AND EQUIPMENT PROGRAMMES
- 18. HON PHIRI asked the Minister of Women and Youth Affairs to state women groups and individuals in Kadoma who have benefitted from loans and equipment programmes that the Ministry has started.
THE MINISTER OF WOMEN AND YOUTH AFAIRS (HON.
NYONI): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I would like to thank Hon. Phiri for asking the question. Mr. Speaker Sir, let me highlight that women’s groups and individuals in Kadoma who have benefited from the loan and equipment programmes from my Ministry, did so through the Women’s Development Fund. The fund was established in 2010 as a means of addressing the lack of collateral amongst women and the high interest rates charged by banks.
Mr. Speaker Sir, in Kadoma district, US$32 850.00 has been disbursed to 24 women’s groups from the Women’s Development Fund from 2010 to date. I would like to appeal to all Members of Parliament to encourage women who have benefited from the Women’s
Development Fund to repay the loans so that the fund can benefit more women.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I hereby table the list of the 24 women from Kadoma.
Serial | Name of Group | Ward/Constituenc
y |
Type of Project | Amount
Received US$ |
Year Funded |
1 | Kushinga | Chakari | Market gardening | 3 000.00 | 2010 |
2 | Kuyedza | Chakari | Poultry | 1 600.00 | 2010 |
3 | Kushanda | Sanyati | Poultry and sewing | 2 500.00 | 2010 |
4 | Kunzwanekuita | Sanyati | Buying and selling | 2 000.00 | 2010 |
5 | Kuwirirana | Sanyati | Piggery | 2 000.00 | 2010 |
6 | Munyati Group | 13 | Poultry | 3 000.00 | 2013 |
7 | Jangano Kadoma | 9 | Bar and catering | 2 000.00 | 2013 |
8 | Mutsindo | 14 | Peanut butter | 2 000.00 | 2013 |
9 | Kutenda Poultry | 10 | Poultry | 2 000.00 | 2013 |
10 | Kushinga Poultry | 13 | Poultry | 2 000.00 | 2013 |
11 | Tabatana Group | 8 | Catering | 2 000.00 | 2013 |
12 | Kals | 15 | Saloon | 1 500.00 | 2013 |
13 | Vambaiwo Group | 2 | Poultry | 1 500.00 | 2013 |
14 | Vebin Group | 16 | Poultry | 1 500.00 | 2013 |
15 | Mana Group | 17 | Poultry | 1 500.00 | 2013 |
16 | Sungadzisimbe | 4 | Poultry | 1 500.00 | 2013 |
17 | Chiedza group | 14 | Poultry | 1 500.00 | 2013 |
18 | Mudzimai Wanhasi | 16 | Baking | 500.00 | 2014 |
19 | Chousvinu | 10 | Beekeeping | 500.00 | 2014 |
20 | Munashe | Buying and selling | 1 000.00 | 2015 | |
21 | Kadoma Women’s Horticulture Group | Horticulture | 1 250.00 | 2015 | |
22 | Mana Group | 17 | Poultry | 1 500.00 | 2013 |
23 | Sungadzisimbe | 4 | Poultry | 1 500.00 | 2013 |
24 | Chiedza Group | 4 | Poultry | 1 500.00 | 2013 |
Total | 32 850.00 |
PROGRESS ON THE ESTABLISHMENT AND CAPITALISATION
OF THE EMPOWER BANK
- HON. NDUNA asked the Minister of Women and Youth Affairs to appraise the House whether there is any progress in the establishment and capitalisation of the Empower Bank targeted specifically at the youths.
THE MINISTER OF WOMEN AND YOUTH AFFAIRS
(HON. NYONI): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I would like to thank
Hon. Nduna for wanting to know the progress on the Empowerment
Bank. Significant progress has been made towards the establishment of Empower Bank Limited that will help young people to realise their economic aspirations. Before I outline the progress that has been achieved so far, I would like to inform Hon. Members that the creation of Empower Bank is consistent with the National Youth Policy that advocates the setting up of a youth friendly financial institution that caters for the needs of the youth for project support.
Empower Bank is a bank that is going to accommodate the peculiarities associated with the youth, the majority of whom do not have collateral security or historical financial records that would prove the usually required good track record.
The Empower Bank project entailed the establishment of a deposit taking microfinance bank. However, registration as a deposit taking institution required a minimum capital injection of US$5m which was not available. As a result, a phased approach had to be adopted with the first phase being the establishment of a credit only microfinance institution (MFI).
The credit only MFI was licenced on 29th May 2017 under the name of Twinstock Capital (Private) Limited after the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe had released an amount of US2 500 000 representing equity injection into the MFI by the Government of Zimbabwe.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Empower Bank project is now in its second phase, namely; the upgrading of the credit only microfinance institution into a deposit-taking microfinance bank that will operate under the name of Empower Bank Limited. The application for the registration of
Empower Bank Limited is currently under consideration by the Reserve
Bank of Zimbabwe as the Government of Zimbabwe released a further US$10m on 28th November 2017 under the 2017 National Budget to
capitalise the project.
The latest payment takes the capitalisation of Empower Bank to US$12.5m which amount enables the Licensing Authority, the Registrar of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs), to register the project as a deposit taking microfinance institution if all the licensing requirements are met.
The board of Empower Bank that is composed of eight directors has been approved by the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe. However, to adequately meet the corporate governance requirements of Empower Bank and also achieve a balanced national representation on the board, I am in the process of re-examining the composition and also nominating additional people to beef up the board of the bank.
The bank is also in the course of securing suitable premises to accommodate both the headquarters and the Harare branch as a starting point before full scale decentralisation once the registration process is complete. The bank is still to recruit staff.
Mr. Speaker Sir, although significant strides have been made in the establishment and capitalisation of Empower Bank, there is still a lot to do. The launch of Empower Bank is one of the urgent projects that Government is working on, although not included in the 100 day plan because of some outstanding issues.
As the application for a deposit taking microfinance institution licence is being considered, several other administrative processes within Government will take place concurrently. It should, however, be appreciated that the procedures involved in setting up a bank are elaborate and time consuming and Hon. Members are encouraged to be patient in the meantime. I want to assure the House that as soon as all the processes are done, the bank will be duly registered and launched.
HON. MARIDADI: Mr. Speaker, Government is putting US$12m to establish this youth bank. Money will go towards licensing, paying of staff and all the other ancillaries that are required to register a bank.
Hon. Minister, is it not prudent to put this money into an existing bank and have a special division that deals with youth affairs and not establish a whole bureaucracy where most of this US$10m will go towards administration and the money that will be made available to the youth will not be as much as putting this money into an existing bank like Standard Chartered and then you have a specific department that handles specific issues pertaining to the youth? I thank you.
HON. NYONI: I would like to thank Hon. Maridadi for the supplementary question and assure him that money will not go towards administration. It will go towards the on-lending. Even if you put this money to an existing bank, it will still go towards administration. The reason why you are having this facility is that young people have been marginalised by traditional banks. They have stringent rules and stringent regulations that really impede young people from accessing loans. There are procedures; the collateral that they ask for is really beyond a lot of young people. What we are trying to do here is to create an institution that will groom young people. They will have different products apart from just lending that will facilitate the young people to be able to be bankable. I thank you.
Questions with Notice were interrupted by THE TEMPORARY
SPEAKER in terms of Standing Order No. 64
HON. NDUNA: Mr. Speaker, I move that there be an extension of Questions with Notice.
HON. CHAPFIKA: I second.
HON. NDUNA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. What I seek to know from the Hon. Minister is the timelines…
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order, Hon. Member, I did
not ask you how much time you require.
HON. NDUNA: Mr. Speaker, if we could have 20 minutes.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Twenty minutes is
permissible.
HON. NDUNA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I want to thank the Hon. Minister for her astute answer. What I need to know is the timelines for the capitalisation of the Empower Bank to the tune of US$12.5 million. What are the timelines that she is giving for the capitalisation of this institution to the tune of US$12.5 million?
HON. NYONI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. The money has already been made available by Treasury. So, there is no timeline. The money is already there. As soon as the procedures are complete, I think the bank will be able to be operationalised.
PROGRESS TOWARDS CLEARANCE OF THE COUNTRY’S
DEBTS
- HON. NDUNA asked the Minister of Finance and Economic Development to appraise the House on the progress the country has made towards the clearance of debts owed to the African Development Bank, the World Bank, the European Investment Bank and other multilateral institutions through the Arrears Clearance Strategy.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): I thank the Hon. Member
for raising this question. Resources have been mobilised to clear the arrears with the World Bank and African Development Bank. The World Bank has in fact written to say that they are ready to receive this money, but we are in discussion with the World Bank as well as with the African Development Bank with respect to what we should expect in terms of new financial inflows in the event that the arrears are cleared.
So to that end, we have agreed that we do a needs assessment for our economy that will inform the African Development Bank and the World Bank with respect to the envelope of new financial inflows which can come away in the event that we clear the arrears. So, the exercise right now, Mr. Speaker Sir, is conducting the needs assessment and we are expecting a World Bank mission to conclude that exercise. We hope that the exercise will be complete by end of March. I thank you Mr.
Speaker Sir.
HON. NDUNA: Mr. Speaker, the question speaks also to the
European Investment Bank and the multilateral institutions through the Arrears Clearance Strategy. Would the Minister also address those two banks or those two institutions.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order. Hon. Bhebhe you
cannot hear me because you are wearing earphones. Can you do that outside the Chamber please.
Hon. Bhebhe left the Chamber.
HON. CHINAMASA: My apologies to the Hon. Member, Mr. Speaker Sir. There are four multilateral institutions; the World Bank, the IMF, the African Development Bank and the European Investment Bank. We cleared our arrears to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the answer I gave was pertaining to the African Development Bank and to the World Bank. I had omitted mentioning the European Investment Bank and that is a matter we will attend to after we have cleared the arrears to the World Bank and to the African Development
Bank.
I need to also point out, Mr. Speaker Sir, that after settling the arrears to the three institutions, we will need to approach the Paris Club Creditors to reach an accommodation with them with respect also to our arrears, but that will be the second stage of the process or in clearing the arrears to the multilateral creditors as well as to bilateral creditors who are organised under the Paris Club. I thank you.
FUEL COST BUILD-UP
- HON. MANGAMI asked the Minister of Energy and Power Development to state the cost build-up of fuel and how Government intends to curb arbitrary fuel price hikes.
THE MINISTER OF ENERGY AND POWER
DEVELOPMENT (HON. S. K. MOYO): Thank you Mr. Speaker. I want to thank the Hon. Member for her question. Zimbabwe imports all its fossil fuels. The bulk, that is over 95% of the fuel, is transported into the country by pipeline from Beira. The rest of the fuel comes into the country by road and rail. Fuel prices in Zimbabwe are based on a cost build-up which takes into account all the cost of importing and distributing fuel as well as the margins allowed for the fuel importers/wholesalers and retailers.
The cost items of the fuel price build-up are as follows:
FOB price or price ex-Beira, freight, taxes and levies – particularly excise duty, administrative costs, distribution costs and margins (for wholesalers and retailers).
The fuel cost build-up fixes a price cap. It would be an offence for oil companies to sell fuel above the price cap. However, oil companies are free to engage in price competition but must take place below the cap.
It should be noted that over the years, it is only the FOB price that has been changing in line with the constant fluctuations in the price of fuel on the international market. The rest of the cost items have remained constant, save for the recent reduction in excise duty.
The current maximum prices per litre for diesel and petrol are as follows: diesel 500 - $1.24; petrol (E5 blend) - $1. 35. It is important to note that, had Government not reduced excise duty on fuel recently, the prices would have been as follows: diesel 500 - $1.31; petrol (E5 blend) - $1.40.
The current cost build-up of diesel and petrol is as follows:
Cost Item (per litre) | Diesel ($) | Petrol ($) |
FOB (Ex-Beira) price | 0.6225 | 0.5820 |
Freight (pipeline charge) | 0.0650 | 0.0650 |
Taxes and Levies | 0.3910 | 0.557 |
Administration costs | 0.0110 | 0.0110 |
Distribution costs | 0.0350 | 0.0350 |
Wholesaler margin | 0.0600 | 0.0600 |
Retail margin | 0.0600 | 0.0600 |
Note: The breakdown of the figures is given in the attached cost build-up.
At selected service stations in the country, one can find the higher quality Diesel 50, which currently sells at a higher price of $1.36 per litre. Diesel 50 is considerably more expensive than Diesel 500 because it is still coming into the country by road, a more expensive option.
Hon. Members are however aware that the country is phasing out Diesel 500. Within the course of February 2018, it is expected that all the Diesel 500 would have been completely phased out. Diesel 50 will then be brought in bulk and transported into the country by pipeline, developments which would considerably reduce the price of Diesel 50. Using current prices as an example, the price of Diesel 50 would drop from $1.36 per litre to the Diesel 500 equivalent of $1.24 per litre.
In the past, Diesel 50 could not be imported by pipeline because the storage facilities in Beira were still receiving Diesel 500 and Diesel 50 should not co-mingle with the inferior Diesel 500 because this would compromise the quality of the Diesel 50.
As Hon. Members may have noted, the international prices of fuel continue to change. Currently, international fuel prices are on the rise. As I have earlier indicated, the only cost item that is causing changes in fuel prices in Zimbabwe is the ex-Beira price which is driven by the fluctuations in international fuel prices.
The Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (ZERA) is
responsible for pricing fuel in the country. The authority does so on a weekly basis and it is common for the prices to increase by a cent or so each time the pricing is done. In this environment of increasing international fuel prices, it is rare for local fuel prices to remain constant for two weeks.
ZERA is also mandated with enforcing fuel pricing. After fixing the price cap, ZERA inspectors go around the country checking compliance to the price cap and penalising any offenders. So, if there are any arbitrary fuel price hikes, then these are illegal and very few. The continued increases in fuel prices are largely due to the rising fuel prices on the international market. I thank you.
ELECTRIFICATION OF SCHOOLS IN MHONDORO-MUBAIRA
CONSTITUENCY
- HON. GANGARAHWE asked the Minister of Energy and Power Development when the following schools in Mhondoro-Mubaira
Constituency will be electrified:
- Chibikira Primary School Ward 1;
- Gora Primary School Ward 6;
- Mavhudzi Secondary School Ward 8;
- Muzavazi Secondary School Ward 27;
- Nyokandove Primary School Ward 7; and
- Peters Musonza, Ward 7.
THE MINISTER OF ENERGY AND POWER
DEVELOPMENT (HON. S. K. MOYO): Mr. Speaker Sir, questions have been raised by many Hon. Members here who want to know when certain institutions in their respective constituencies shall be electrified.
Whilst it is the Government’s responsibility to provide electricity to rural institutions through Rural Electrification Fund (REF), the available resources have not been enough to meet expectations, hence creating a huge backlog.
Currently, REF has been implementing the Rural Electrification
Programme in consultation with Rural District Councils and their
Provincial Administrators in coming up with priority projects considering the cost of the project to be involved, equity distribution within the provinces and resource availability.
REF plans to electrify Mavhudzi and Muzavazi Secondary Schools in the current year whilst Chibikira School, Gora, Nyokandove Primary Primary Schools and St. Peters Musonza are scheduled to be electrified in 2019, subject to the availability of funds.
However, it must be noted that REF is in the process of finalising a Rural Energy Master Plan (REMP) which will act as a guide in implementing the Rural Electrification Programme. Once adopted, the document will form the basis for programming all electrification projects in rural areas including the above mentioned institutions. Mr. Speaker Sir, once the Rural Energy Master Plan is in place, members may engage the Rural Electrification Fund’s Provincial Offices for details regarding electrification of various institutions of interest to them. Thank you.
HON. PHIRI: Mr. Speaker Sir, in most cases REA does not have enough finances but in most cases, it is transport and other resources that they are failing to get. What is the Ministry doing to assist as far as financing REA and also ZESA itself? Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
HON. S. K. MOYO: Mr. Speaker, let me say that REF is the
Rural Electrification Fund. It is a fund and of course, where they have got difficulties, they always reflect that in their budget. As far as I am concerned at the moment, if transport is a problem to them, surely they should have their priorities correct in terms of the fund, but it is a matter which I personally would want to follow-up and find out why they are not able to fulfill the obligations when they have got a fund which can take care of some of these challenges. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
POLICY ON REPAIRING OF ELECTRICITY TRANSFORMERS
- HON. GANGARAHWE asked the Minister of Energy and Power Development to state:
- the policy on repairing electricity transformers considering that some transformers in Mhondoro-Mubaira Constituency have not been repaired for the past one and half years ago; and
- whether the Ministry is aware that the Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC) is requesting Muzavazi Primary School in Ward 27 and St.
John’s Matarutse in Ward1 in Mhondoro-Mubaira Constituency to pay for repair of broken down transformers; and if so, to advise whether it is the Ministry’s policy.
THE MINISTER OF ENERGY AND POWER DEVELOPMENT (HON. S. K. MOYO): Thank you again Mr.
Speaker. I want to thank the Hon. Member for his question.
- There is no policy with regards to the repairing of faulty transformers. My Ministry is committed to ensuring that customers have adequate supplies of electricity and this is done by availing transformers where they are needed in addition to repairing faulty ones. However, of late, the utility has been overwhelmed with faulty transformer replacement backlog, worsened by transformer oil thefts and vandalism. ZETDC is however prioritising institutions such as schools and clinics.
- However, there is a policy in place to credit customers who are prepared to purchase transformers or any other material required in the provision of electricity. This is done where ZETDC does not have the requisite resources at that time, but the customers are willing to provide the resources in order to quicken the process. Refunds will be made through equivalent energy credits to the customers’ accounts.
Coming to the specific institutions which the Hon. Member referred to, ZETDC is scheduled to replace the transformers for
Muzavazi Primary School and St. John’s Mataruse by end of March this year (2018). Thank you Mr. Speaker.
HON. MAJOME: Thank you Hon. Speaker. I would like to ask the Hon. Minister in light of the issue of the rampant theft of transformer oils because in Harare West Constituency, there is such a problem. My question is that while the Hon. Minister has noted that we have an epidemic of the vandalism of transformers, does the Hon. Minister have plans to improve security for transformers and electrical equipment so that these mishaps do not happen and then we start looking around for money.
Also even by way of technologies like Panic Alarms, CCTVs to secure those transformers that are there and also for ZETDC to ensure that their transformers, if vandalised, consumers do not suffer because there is no money that is available. Is his Ministry looking into means to ensure that the plight of consumers is alleviated and that the Ministry and ZETDC do not get under pressure so much from the vandalism that keeps on happening? Thank you.
HON. S. K. MOYO: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I want to thank the Hon. Member for her contribution which I think is very sound and I can assure you that we take note of what you have said. We shall see how we go, but we are very grateful for that. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
REHABILITATION OF SKYLINE-MUBAIRA ROAD
- HON. GANGARAHWE asked the Minister of Transport and
Infrastructural Development when the Skyline -Mubaira road in Mhondoro-Mubaira Constituency which was rendered impassable by 2015/2016 rain season will be rehabilitated.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Thank you Mr. Speaker. The 87 km gravel section of the road was graded in 2017 under the Emergency Road Rehabilitation Programme (ERRP). Added to this, Mupfure River Bridge on the 77 km peg along the same road was also repaired as part of the emergency road rehabilitation programme in 2017. The suspended culverts on the 81 km peg were also repaired as part of this programme. This year, 30 km of the same stretch or road has already been graded. If the Hon. Member is not visiting the place, can he go back and check. I thank you.
*HON. GANGARAHWE: I want to thank the Minister for the response but I believe you were not given adequate response by your provincial office. The road was graded for 5km last year because there were excessive rains and it has never been graded before. I asked the same question in April last year and you said it would be graded in the second phase that was starting on the 1st of July. Nothing has been done up to now. May you revisit your response because that is not the truth? I thank you.
HON. DR. GUMBO: Mr. Speaker Sir, the Hon. Member is fully aware that I personally visited Mashonaland West Province. He knows that I was at Chinhoyi when the Hon. Members, the road construction officers including the provincial engineer were present. They gave me the full answer and all the money that was spent on that road. The fact that the road might now be in a very bad state, I totally accept because our gravel roads do not take even a month to get into a very bad state. To say the road was not done when I had visited the province personally and made sure that his question was answered before his own people who supervises the roads in the same province, leaves a lot to be desired.
I thank you.
HON. GANGARAHWE: Supplementary.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Gangarahwe.
There is no need for any supplementary, do your homework.
WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS TO QUESTION WITH NOTICE
MEASURES TO ENSURE EFFICIENCY AND EFFECTIVENESS IN
THE ADMINISTRATION OF PENSIONS BENEFITS
- HON. G. K. SITHOLE asked the Minister of Labour and
Social Welfare to state;
- measures being taken by the Ministry in ensuring efficiency and effectiveness in the administration of pensions benefits; and
- when Mr. Mawondo, a resident of Chitungwiza North constituency and surviving spouse of the late Josephine Mawondo with Pension Number 244/2101, would start accessing pension benefits as the surviving spouse.
THE MINISTER OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL WELFARE
(HON. KAGONYE): The authority is updating member employment and contribution records to ensure that the information is readily available at the time of claiming benefits (death, invalidity or retirement). This will reduce on turnaround time hence availability of benefit to members and their dependants on time. The Authority currently runs a television advert at prime time during the 2000 hours news encouraging employers and contributors to come forthwith to pay contributions and update member records.
- The Authority has adopted and is nurturing a customer centric culture that will see it delivering superior services to customers.
- NSSA introduced the biometric identification system in order to ensure that pensioners are not defrauded of their pay outs by unscrupulous third parties and also to avoid payment of benefits to ghost pensioners.
- The Authority uses a multi-channel benefits disbursement system that is done through all banks and mobile money service providers in order to give pensioners an opportunity to choose payment channels of their choice.
- NSSA engaged private sector partners to enhance benefits pay outs, for example, provisions of the Funeral Benefits Enhancement
by partnering with a funeral service provider to offer decent burial to pensioners since 1 April 2017.
- The Authority engaged banks for exemption of bank charges to pensioners. Pensioners are exempted of bank charges by all the banks.
- NSSA continuously engages stakeholders through workshops for feedback on service delivery and suggestions for improvement. The Authority is committed to improving its systems and procedures on the road to service excellence.
Mr. Mawondo started receiving survivor’s pension in August 2015 backdated to 2 June 2015, which is the date of death of the late contributor Mrs. Josephine Mawondo. He registered for biometrics on 31 January 2017. His pension payment is up to date.
SWITCHING OF ELECTRICITY IN SCHOOLS IN ZAKA NORTH
CONSTITUENCY
- HON. MAVENYENGWA asked the Minister of Energy and
Power Development when the following schools and a clinic in Zaka North Constituency will be switched on two years after electricity lines and transformers were installed by the Rural Electricity Agency:
- Chiredza Primary School;
- Redza Secondary School;
- Mandhloro Primary School;
- Mukwirimba Primary School and
- Mandhloro Clinic.
THE MINISTER OF ENERGY AND POWER DEVELOPMENT (HON. S. K. MOYO): Mr. Speaker Sir, let me
thank the Hon. Member for raising the above question. Delays in connecting the above-mentioned schools were due to shortages of meters which in turn is attributed to foreign currency challenges. Under the 100 Day Rapid Results Initiative, it is our expectation that 30 000 meters will be connected by 10th April 2018. Meters for the institutions which the Hon. Member is concerned with have been sourced and should be installed before the end of February 2018.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHINAMASA): I move that Orders of the
Day, Numbers 1 to 44 be stood over until Order of the Day, Number 45 has been disposed of.
HON. TOFFA: I object Mr. Speaker Sir.
Motion put and objected.
On the motion of HON. RUNGANI, seconded by HON. L. SIBANDA, the House adjourned at Twenty-Three Minutes past Five o’clock p.m.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Tuesday, 16th January, 2018
The National Assembly met at a Quarter-past Two o’clock p. m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. SPEAKER in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE HON. SPEAKER
REGISTRATION OF HON. MEMBERS TO EXISTING COMMITTEES
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have to inform the House that Hon. Members whose Portfolio Committees were dissolved are required to register to existing Committees by Thursday, 18th January, 2018, obviously in consultation with the Whips.
Hon. A. Mnangagwa having stood up.
THE HON. SPEAKER: How do I address you now? – [Laughter.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Pedzisai, please take your seat.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC PLANNING (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. Speaker Sir, I stand to move, with the leave of the House, that items on the Order Paper, Number 1 to 9 be stood over until item Number 10 has been disposed of.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
LEAVE TO MOVE SUSPENSION OF PROVISIONS OF STANDING ORDERS NUMBER 51, 62 (2) AND 64 (5)
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC PLANNING (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. Speaker Sir, I again seek leave of the House to move that the provisions of Standing Orders Number 51, 62 (2) and 64 (5) regarding the automatic adjournment of the House at Five Minutes to Seven o’clock p.m. and at Twenty-five Minutes past One o’clock p.m. on a Friday; private Member’s motions taking precedence on Wednesdays after Question Time and that Question Time shall be on Wednesdays respectively be suspended with effect from today and for the next series of sittings in respect of the
Finance and Appropriation 2018 Bills. Mr. Speaker Sir. I accordingly move.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
SUSPENSION OF PROVISIONS OF STANDING ORDERS NUMBER 51, 62 (2) AND 64 (5)
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC PLANNING (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. Speaker Sir, I now move that the provisions of Standing Orders Numbers 51, 62 (2) and 64 (5) regarding the automatic adjournment of the House at Five Minutes to Seven o’clock p.m. and at Twenty-five Minutes past One o’clock p.m. on a Friday; private Member’s motions taking precedence on Wednesdays after Question Time and that Question Time shall be on Wednesdays respectively be suspended with effect from today and for the next series of sittings in respect of the Finance and Appropriation Bills for 2018.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
LEAVE TO MOVE SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDERS NO. 32 (5) AND 139
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC PLANNING (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. Speaker Sir, I again rise to seek leave of the House to move that provisions of Standing Orders Number 32 (5) and 139 relating to the reporting period of the Parliamentary Legal Committee and Stages of Bills respectively, be suspended in respect of the Budget Debate, Finance Bill and Appropriation Bills.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
SUSPENSION OF STANDING ORDERS NO. 32 (5) AND 139
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC PLANNING (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. Speaker Sir, I am grateful to the Hon. Members. I now rise to move that provisions of Standing Orders Number 32 (5) and 139 relating to the reporting period of the Parliamentary Legal Committee and Stages of Bills respectively, be
suspended in respect of the Budget Debate: Finance; Appropriation Bills of 2018.
Motion put and agreed to.
HON. MISIHAIRABWI-MUSHONGA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I rise on a point of privilege. Last week we had a motion in this House on sanitary wear and unfortunately, I do not know how the perception was created that in that debate …
An Hon. Member having crossed between the Chair and the Member speaking.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order Hon. Shumba, you cannot pass in front of a debating member. Please go backwards.
HON. MISIHAIRABWI-MUSHONGA: Unfortunately, I am not sure where that understanding came from that in that presentation of that debate, that I had said the Minister of Finance had not provided support to the production company. I just thought it is important to take this opportunity to clarify that in fact, the Minister of Finance has provided support. Initially, it was $136 000 and last week a further $100
000 and therefore the Minister has supported to the tune of $236 000 to Farai and that Farai is not on the verge of closure. In fact, they have been able to resume the work that they are supposed to do just before schools close. I just thought that it was important to clarify that matter particularly given the fact that the Minister of Finance had come to the table and had been supportive – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.]
MOTION
FINANCE BILL: BUDGET DEBATE
Tenth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on leave to bring in a Finance Bill.
Question again proposed.
HON. CROSS: It is an honour to stand here today and start to debate in the House on this year’s budget. Your Committee of Finance has in fact consulted extensively inside the country on this issue. We held public consultations some months ago and then more recently, we met with all the key stakeholders in the economy.
The budget proposes measures to try and grow the economy of Zimbabwe. I think this is the key priority for the budget this year because there is no doubt about it that at the present levels of economic production in Zimbabwe, our budget is unable to meet our essential needs. Many allocations in the budget reflect that. The Minister’s efforts in this regard are welcome. The Committee expresses praise for the measures which he is proposing to take.
We also recognised that the Minister is trying to move away from business as usual and that this budget is an effort to try and start looking at our fiscal affairs in a new light and trying to engineer a situation which will put the country on a stable trajectory for growth and we welcome that. But, we must not underestimate the magnitude of our problems. The 2018 Budget remains highly consumption oriented. Seventy five percent (75%) of the revenue envisaged for 2018 will go to salaries. This is simply too much.
In addition to that Mr. Speaker, the budget deficit envisaged by the budget figures and the Committee is actually at variance with the
Minister to some extend because we believe that the true budget deficit forecast is 1.9 billion dollars and not 700 million. The reason for that is that the figures that we have from the Blue Book do not tally in some respects with the figures he gave us in his Budget Statement. This is something that needs clarity. But I point out to the House that in 2016, the technical budget deficit of the country was 1.4 billion dollars. It can be reduced slightly to one billion dollars, we remove certain components in the budget deficit, but from a technical or fiscal stand point, the budget deficit in 2016 was US$1.4 billion. We believe that the budget deficit in 2017 will be closer to 2.2 billion than US$1.7. This constitutes a very substantial proportion of the GDP and it explains why we have a cash shortage. It is the key problem which confronts the Minister at this moment and time.
He has to get the monster of the budget deficit under control. He has to reduce it to a regionally acceptable level of about 3%. In his official budget statement, he makes that commitment to maintain budget deficit of US$700 million dollars but the Committee felt that this was
not realistic. In fact, we expect that the budget deficit this year will be substantially greater than the forecast of the Minister if nothing is done about the issue of revenue.
In addition to this, we are concerned that the Ministry of Finance is in violation of the Constitution in many areas of fiscal management and we point out the following:-
Non observance of debt restrictions and requirements in disclosure to the Parliament; we are in fact in violation of the maximum overdraft that the Government can hold at the Reserve Bank. This should have been reported to the House and the condonation of the House should have been sought.
The question of providing resources for the implementation of the devolution exercise provided for in the Constitution Section 264 has not been made.
Provision of 5% of gross revenue for local authorities, Section under 301 has not been met. This is the fourth year in which this
violation has occurred. In addition to that, the Minister has an obligation under the Constitution to introduce a Bill to the National Assembly seeking condonation of unauthorised expenditure without delay and in any event, no later than 60 days after the extent of the unauthorised expenditure has been established and that is under Section 307.
Furthermore, he has failed to introduce supplementary Appropriation Bill in the House providing for the issuance of the necessary funds from the Consolidated Revenue Fund and to close the gap caused by insufficient Appropriation Funds, Section 305 of the Constitution and Section 19 of the Public Finance Management Act.
Finally, Mr. Speaker Sir, we are concerned that we are in violation of the principle in the Constitution, that all revenues of the State should be paid into the Consolidated Revenue Fund and only where a specific Act of Parliament requires or permits them to be paid into some other funds established for a specific purpose, that is Section 302 (b) of the
Constitution. We feel that these violations of the Constitution require his urgent attention. Mr. Speaker Sir, I do not think that the House should condone these kinds of poor performance against established legislation, especially the Constitution.
Our recommendations Mr. Speaker Sir; I have mentioned the fact that we believe that the budget deficit in the Blue Book reflects a projected budget deficit of $1.9 billion as against $700 million and that is based on total expenditure approaching $7 billion and revenues of $5.1 billion. The revenue figures Mr. Speaker Sir, we feel are in fact quite realistic. He is forecasting total revenues from tax of $4.3 billion and the other revenues bring it up to $5.1billion target. The Estimates of Expenditure at $7billion, I think he is going to have difficulty holding it at that level.
Therefore, we once again face a situation where the projected budget deficit in the country is going to be over 10% of the GDP and this is simply unsustainable. We have to look at some way in which we can raise additional revenue. I personally have discussed the possibility
of putting a small tax on electronic transactions and I have personally raised this with the Hon. Minister and not had any response. However, I consulted the Bankers’ Association and tax experts and I believe this is feasible.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the figures are extraordinary. The Hon. Minister estimates that our Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is $19 billion in 2018 but the total value of swipe transactions in 2017 was $76 billion and the total value of RTGs transactions, about $50 billion and if you add that, the total value of transactions through systems like ecocash, which constitutes another $1 billion a week; Mr. Speaker, we are looking at the total value of electronic transfers in 2017 of $180 billion. To me as an economist, that reflects the fact that our actual economy is much bigger, probably more than double the size of the figure estimated by the Minister. His figure only reflects the value of the formal sector, but if you add the informal sector trading into our national economy, we probably have an economy in excess of $40 billion.
Mr. Speaker, several months ago when you raised the idea that we could have a $10 billion budget, I was very skeptical, but the reality is; if our real GDP is $40 billion, then 25% of our GDP is $10 billion. Mr. Speaker Sir, I believe that we can cover the shortfall in our revenues. We can provide more money for our health sector; we can fund the Parliament of Zimbabwe properly if we put a small tax on electronic transfers. If we put 5%, five cents in a dollar on that, it is $9 billion of new revenue.
Mr. Speaker, I have spoken to our Committee and it is skeptical and has urged me to make sure that this matter is raised in the Committee in the next month or so. However, I think this is an urgent matter because we must resolve this question of our deficit and the only way to resolve it is to tax the people in the informal sector. If you put a tax on electronic transfers, it is easy and cheap to collect and everybody pays. If you step into an emergency transport taxi and you pay your fare using ecocash, you pay five cents to the Minister of Finance, it would solve our problems overnight. It will reduce expenditure on labour and
salaries to 35% of our budget; it would eliminate our deficit immediately and give us resources to settle our bill with the multinational agencies. I think that we have to look at this.
I do not believe for one minute that Zimbabwe has an economy which is only $19 billion. Just look around you. I went to dinner the other night at a restaurant in town; it was packed to capacity. This is not a poor country, this is a country which is rich and I believe that our people would not object to raising funds in this way from our existing population and I urge the Minister to consider this. On expenditure and rationalisation, Mr. Speaker, it is very difficult to reduce expenditure and it is one of the toughest jobs in the financial game. Reducing expenditure on salaries is very difficult because you are dealing with people’s lives – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] -
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order.
HON. CROSS: I do not believe that in fact our focus in this budget debate should be on reducing expenditure but it should be on
increasing the cake, increasing the amount of money which the Treasury has to spend. I think that should be the real focus of the 2018 debate.
On the question of employment costs, 75% of the present budget – I will just point out to Hon. Members here, that is the highest rate of expenditure on employment costs for a Government in the whole of Africa. In Tanzania, it is only 22% of the Budget.
Mr. Speaker Sir, on the question of parastatal reforms, the Committee welcomes the Minister’s tough stance. He has made it quite clear that he is not going to allow parastatals to continue to lose money and not contribute to the fiscus; that if they want to remain in business, they must turn a profit and no debate. The Committee also welcomes the list of parastatals to be privatised, it is long overdue. At the beginning of the Government of National Unity (GNU), we decided that we would privatise 10 parastatals, the Minister’s list is much more substantial and I think the House should support him in every way.
Then is the Minister’s forecast on growth in 2018 of 4.5%. I hope this is modest Mr. Speaker. I think that with the measures being taken
by the Government since the changes in November, I can see the private sector responding strongly with new investments. In fact, my contacts in the private sector are abuzz with new investors coming into the country and wanting to do things which they have been holding onto for many months or even years. I have seen for myself the new attitude, the new culture of work inside the Government where Ministers are coming to work early in the morning. The President, I understand comes to work at 7:30 a.m. I understand the President demands that people should be on time. Mr. Speaker, if that is the name of the game, I want to tell you that we could well exceed the growth forecast for this year. I think that will provide us with a real basis for moving forward in the future – [AN HON. MEMBER: Hear, hear.] –
On the question of social services allocations Mr. Speaker, our principle concern as a Committee – and remember we are not responsible for any one of the individual ministries, this is purely and simply from a macroeconomic point of view. Our principle concern Hon. Minister, was the allocation to health. Allocation to health is barely
5.8% of the budget this year, which is simply and totally inadequate. If we can resolve the revenue problems of the Government, I think the health budget must be the first priority – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear] - we need to double the health budget and we should not shy away from that. We cannot run our hospitals with the kind of budget we have got here and we cannot expect our health professionals to work in this kind of environment. As a country, we simply have to make health a bigger priority.
The other question which we examined at length Mr. Speaker and which we are concerned about is the question of ECD. When the Government announced that they were going to extend compulsory primary school education by two years to include the ECD children, what they were doing is they were bringing something like 600 000 to 700 000 children into the school system. We needed 16 000 new classrooms. We needed goodness knows how many more teachers, 20 to 25 000.
When you make a policy decision like this, Mr. Speaker, to extend the education system for primary schools downwards by two years, you must provide for the changes financially, and to expect parents to pick up the tab for teachers, classrooms, school books and everything else makes a complete mockery of our commitment of free primary school education. This is a matter which must be addressed. If the Minister of Education is going to be required to provide two years of ECD education to all the primary school children in this country, we must provide the teachers and we must provide the necessary supporting infrastructure - no question.
On the question of the amendments to the Indigenisation Act, Mr. Speaker, the Finance Bill this year is a very substantial document. It is nearly 50 pages and this is usual. It is an American practice to use legislation as an omnibus vehicle for changing Acts, and that is what the Minister is doing here. Clearly, he is in a hurry to do so. Your Committee, Mr. Speaker Sir, expressed concern that a fundamental piece of legislation like the Indigenisation Act should not be amended in the
Finance Act, it should be a result of the formal amendment of the Act itself, and that there should be a debate on this issue in the House before the changes are instituted. This is a vital piece of legislation and that was the main criticism of the Finance Act itself.
On the question of addressing the cash shortage, Mr. Speaker, all of us should have seen the massive queues at Christmas time as people went to their banks and tried to draw money to go home and they were unsuccessful. I know personally from my own bank, I was unable to draw cash for a month. No cash whatsoever. Mr. Speaker, we simply cannot carry on like this. We have to find a solution and I think the Minister and the Governor of the Reserve Bank have got to give real attention to this. This is not a peripheral issue. You cannot ask rural peasant families to use swipe cards. The unbanked community in Zimbabwe must be 70% of the population. They need cash. They do not need some kind of promise of money by and by.
How much time are our people wasting standing in queues unproductively? How many factories do we have that are short of staff
during the day because they go and try and collect their salaries from the banks? I think there is a solution to this. Your Committee has considered this and in fact, made recommendations some months ago, but I think this needs to be addressed as a matter of urgency. The core issue is the budget deficit because that is absorbing all the liquidity that we have.
On the question of the inflation forecast, the Committee was rather critical of the Minister’s estimate. The Minister’s estimate is 3% for 2017 and 3% for 2018. Minister, we know that is a fiction. I spoke to one of the largest retail chains in the country a few weeks ago and the Managing Director told me his average inflation in the supermarket was 30%. Now, does the Minister think that the current increase in VAT returns is based on real turn over? It is not, it is inflation. I do not believe for one minute that we can expect inflation to be held down to 3% in 2018. It is more likely to be 15% or 20% and the reason is the informal market for foreign exchange. People are paying a 60%
premium today for United States dollars to import goods and that is the thing that is driving inflation.
The other thing that is driving inflation is the shortage of goods in the economy. If you create a shortage of goods here, businessmen will take advantage of it. There will be people taking advantage and increasing prices. If you increase the cost of buying foreign exchange to import goods from South Africa or from anywhere else by 60%, you will see inflation. If you bring in regulations which require licences for imports and you bring in exchange control at the Reserve Bank, you will get rent seeking. One of the biggest importers in this country has told me recently he has to buy his import permits from intermediaries. In those circumstances, Mr. Speaker, it is perfectly understandable that we are going to have rapid inflation, and I think that finding a solution to that is not a question of just putting it in the hands of a committee appointed by the ZANU PF Politburo. It is an issue which requires all of our attention.
On the question of completing public sector projects…
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order. Please wind up. Your time is almost up.
HON. CROSS: On the question of Public Sector Projects, Mr. Speaker, when a Public Sector Project is not completed on time.
HON. D. SIBANDA: On a point of order, Mr. Speaker Sir. I propose that we extend the time for the Hon. Member since it is a budget report from the Committee.
HON. MANGAMI: I second.
HON. CROSS: Thank you Mr. Speaker. On the question of public sector projects, when Parliamentarians visit public sector projects around the country, they observe many public sector projects which are being delayed by the failure of Government to provide adequate resources. I think the new police accommodation along Enterprise road is a typical example which remains uncompleted in two years. There are many other examples around the city, but I bring Hon. Member’s attention particularly to the Tokwe-Mukorsi dam which was started in
1998 and only completed last year at a cost of $250 million when the original cost was $57 million. That is the price we pay for delays.
On the question of the national debt, Mr. Speaker, because of the big fiscal deficit we have been running, the national debt on the domestic front has been growing very rapidly and currently stands at about $14 billion overall. This is a continuing problem for Zimbabwe at a time when we can ill afford to incur additional debt, we are building up domestic debts in many different forms very rapidly.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order. Hon. Majome, please take a seat.
HON. CROSS: We were very pleased to see the uncompromising stance which the new Government has taken towards this problem. We just would like to point out to Hon. Members that if you have holes in your bucket and you try and fill it from the top, all you do is put water on the ground. What we are doing right, now because we are not sealing, all the holes that were leaking, we are not making most effective use of our limited resources.
In the mining sector, Mr. Speaker, it is my personal view that the new Minister of Mines and Mining Development is probably one of the best Ministers we have ever had in this country and we are looking forward to receiving the first reports from him, but on the fiscal side we have a lot of work to do because from the fiscal perspective, Mr. Speaker Sir, we lumber the mining industry with a great deal of charges and burdens that they should not be carrying, $50 a mega litre of water, for example, when the general cost is $6 is just an example and it goes on.
I understand that a new economic blueprint is being developed and the Committee simply said that what we would like to see is a development plan based on both medium and long term plans for the Government. The last point I want to raise – [HON. MUSHOHWE: Inaudible interjections]-
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Mushohwe.
HON. CROSS: Is the question of the parliamentary budget. I think in terms of the Committees of the House, the parliamentary budget
is specifically our Committees’ responsibility. We have examined the parliamentary budgets in many other countries with a similar GDP to ours, countries with a similar size of parliament, Uganda for example. In Uganda the budget for parliament is US$120m a year. Our budget this year of US$57.2m is totally inadequate to make this Parliament work properly - [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] - I want to emphasize here Mr. Speaker, we are not talking about Members of Parliament welfare, we are not talking about putting more money in the pockets of Members of Parliament. We are talking about giving Members of Parliament tools with which to do the job for which they are charged with in terms of the Constitution - [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] –
Mr. Speaker, we believe that the Minister should agree with Parliament’s request for a budget of US$98m and not a cent less - [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – Mr. Speaker, the budget is the key instrument for policy under the present dispensation in Zimbabwe. It is the central part of Government’s efforts to make Zimbabwe work. I believe Mr. Speaker that the Minister knows exactly what to do. I
believe he has done a great job in his draft budget. I would like to see this Budget applied for the next three months but I would like to ask him to come back to this House in April and do something about the revenue and something dramatic. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
HON. DR. MUKANDURI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. In seconding the report that has been given by Hon. Cross, I want to zero in on three issues. The first one is on the allocation to Parliament. Mr. Speaker Sir, we all know that the State is composed of three arms and that is the Executive,
HON. GONESE: On a point of order Mr. Speaker Sir.
THE HON. SPEAKER: What is your point of order?
HON. GONESE: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir, as a matter of procedure, we are debating the motion by Hon. Minister of Finance and Economic Development to seek leave to bring in a Finance Bill. The contributions from Chairpersons of Portfolio Committees and the Budget Committee are actually part of the debate. In that respect Mr. Speaker Sir, we do not second those reports, but the various
Chairpersons can present their reports. I believe that Hon. Dr. Mukanduri in purporting to second the report is actually out of order Mr. Speaker - [Laughter.] - I believe that in terms of our usually practice Mr. Speaker, we allow Chairpersons of Committees, then other members can debate. We cannot purport to second a report because actually the main debate is on the motion by the Hon. Minister for leave to bring in a Finance Bill. So, in that respect I think he is out of order - [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] -
THE HON. SPEAKER: Thank you. Order, Hon. Dr. Mukanduri, are you representing a Chairperson – [AN HON MEMBER: He is representing self.] –
HON. DR. MUKANDURI: I am from the same Committee and ...
THE HON. SPEAKER: No, no later on. I want Chairpersons.
HON. CHITINDI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I rise to table a report of the Transport and Infrastructural Development Portfolio Committee. Budget allocation of 2018, Vote 11, was US$87 501 000.00.
Introduction.
As Government gears itself for the much needed economic turnaround, the critical role played by the transport sector cannot be over emphasized. Given the unpleasant state of road, rail and air transport infrastructure across the country, it is imperative that efforts be made towards recapitalising and retooling the state enterprise mandated to preside over this very important sector. While it is clear that public resources are a far cry from requirements alternative financing arrangements such as loans, strategic partnerships, triple PPPs and privatization of parastatals...
HON. MARIDADI: On a point of order Mr. Speaker Sir.
THE HON. SPEAKER: What is your point of order?
HON. MARIDADI: Mr. Speaker seeing as we have many Portfolio Committees in Parliament, I humbly suggest that instead of having Chairpersons of Portfolio Committee go through the entire report with introductions and who was in the Committee can we not go to the meat of the matter where there are recommendations. We look at
recommendations because I think those are the issues that the Minister would want to grapple with. I thank you. It needs - [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: I thank you. Can you speak to your recommendations please?
HON. CHITINDI: Thank you Mr. Speaker for your guidance - [AN HON. MEMBER: Inaudible interjection.] – Your Committee’s recommendations Mr. Speaker Sir are as follows: -
5.1. Capacity building be undertaken for road authorities to ensure that they improve on their draw down of funds from ZINARA and improve road infrastructure. In addition, ZINARA engineers should be involved in the monitoring of road works undertaken by road authorities using disbursed funds. Moreover, capacity building by the Zimbabwe Institution of Engineers and the Engineers Council of Zimbabwe in the form of refresher courses and orientation is recommended for road authority engineers to improve their workmanship.
5.2. The restricting of Air Zimbabwe, along the lines of privatization needs to be expedited. Meanwhile, Treasury support is sought with regards to the IATA Clearing House and the IOSA audit which both require about US$13m. The IATA Clearing House debt, in particular, has since shot up from US$2.6m to the current US$4.6m from, and the figure keeps on ballooning. Without the engagement and repayment of IATA fees, Air Zimbabwe remains technically insolvent.
5.3. The US$400m NRZ-DIDG-Transnet deal needs to be expedited. Meanwhile, the US$10m allocated for emergency works should be disbursed for works to commence.
5.4. A Statutory Instrument that limits the transportation of coal by road and mandates mine houses and other companies to move at least 10% of their cargo by rail should be promulgated. This will complement the recapitalization of the NRZ.
5.5. Road Motor Services should be put under NRZ. Furthermore, urgency is need on Phase II of the Zimbabwe Dry Port Facility at Walvis Bay which is four months behind schedule. This is a very profitable
venture. During high seas at Beira, we are forced to us Maputo and Durban, hence the Walvis Dry Port would be a handy alternative.
5.6. Efforts be made to ensure successful negotiations for the US$153m facility for the urgent and critical rehabilitation and expansion works at the R. G. Mugabe International Airport. Your Committee recommends the involvement of local engineers under the Zimbabwe Institution of Engineers and Engineering Council of Zimbabwe in the implementation of the projects. Furthermore, local procurement is recommended with local suppliers being embedded in the National Projects Status so that they are tax exempt, thus making them more competitive. Seeing that this loan facility includes radar systems which are conspicuous by their absence thereby compromising aviation safety and income flows, expedience is called for.
5.7. We recommend that the Ministry implements the directive to half price of number plates so that there is compliance in the registration and re-registration of motor vehicles. This will also positively impact on revenue inflows.
5.8 Your Committee also recommends an upwards review of the retention funds by the Ministry from the current 5% to 10% to cater for road safety programmes.
In conclusion, the transport and logistics sector lies at the heart of the economy revival efforts of the Government, especially the cost and ease of doing business reforms. The resuscitation of this very economic enabler will greatly complement efforts in other sectors of the economy. In this light, the timeous and consistent disbursement of allocated funds and consummation of strategic partnership and loan negotiations will provide the much needed impetus for the revival of this sector and the economy at large. Nevertheless, due diligence is needed in the various negotiations to ensure a win-win situation. Furthermore, given the 1,5 million vehicles currently on the roads, it is imperative that we computerise transport management systems to reduce road carnage, ensure road worthy vehicles and spike in both revenue generation and collection for the Ministry of Transport and the Government of Zimbabwe. I thank you.
HON. DHEWA: I wish to present the final report of the post-budget analysis by the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Media, Information Communication Technology, Postal and Cyber Security. I will start off with Vote 20, the Ministry of Media, Information and Broadcasting Services. From the allocation for 2018, there was an increase in terms of the budget of 708% …
Hon. Musanhi having passed between the Chair and the Hon. Member on the floor
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Musanhi, you cannot cross between the Chair and the Hon. Member speaking.
HON. DHEWA: In terms of the recommendations, in view of the above observations, the Committee recommends that:
1. The $125 million that the Ministry had asked for should be made available so that the Ministry can complete the digitalisation project and migrate from analogue to digital transmission.
2. The implementation of this programme is behind schedule and
should be completed by 30th June this year.
3. The Ministry should fully utilise the film training school and generate some revenues from it through hiring and renting to other players in the media sector.
4. Also, the board for the Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe should be appointed as a matter of urgency for good corporate governance.
5. The Zimbabwe Commission Board should also be constituted.
6. The Ministry should have a Minister for policy direction. Completed digital transmitters should be switched on because you are also aware that some of the transmitters have already been completed and are digital compliant but have not been switched on. Funds allocated to the Ministry should be disbursed timeously so that the Ministry can effectively execute its mandate.
7. The ZBC/TV should come up with content that attracts viewership and therefore advertisers for revenue generation.
8. They should also utilise available local skills base.
The Ministry of Information, Media and Broadcasting Services plays a critical role in the dissemination of information, promotion of public communication and builds the image of the country. For the Ministry to achieve these objectives and targets, there is need for adequate provision of funding from Treasury. The Committee noted with concern that the funding provided by Treasury is inadequate for the Ministry to achieve its set objectives for the fiscal year, especially the digitilisation project.
I will now move on to the Ministry of Information, Communication Technology, Postal and Courier Services and Cyber Security which also in the allocation proposed by the Minister of Finance has got an increase of 65% compared to what they got last year.
The Committee recommends that:
1. The use of ICT be expanded to include rural areas.
2. The national fiber optic backbone should be expanded to all areas of the country. Critical works on the Zimbabwe Digital Broadcasting Migration Project should be completed within the current financial year.
3. The digitilisation of the television sites, construction of transmission towers should be completed and operationalised by end of June this year.
4. Digital services from the completed transmitter sites that have been completed have to be made available to those willing to utilise them.
5. Works on the National Data Centre have to be completed.
6. The Ministry should come up with one provider for internet services.
7. The Broadcasting Authority is a regulator and therefore Transmedia has to deal with issues of infrastructure.
8. The Ministry should be accommodated in Government premises to cut on unnecessary expenditure from the payment of rentals.
The Ministry of Information, Communication Technology, Postal and Courier Services and Cyber Security plays a critical role in developing a knowledge based society with connectivity by exploiting the potential of ICT for sustainable socio-economic development. This is critical for the economic development of the country and the Ease of Doing Business. For the Ministry to achieve its objectives and targets, there is need for adequate provision of funding from Treasury. The Committee notes with appreciation the increase in terms of the allocation on maintenance and so on but there is still need to actually ensure that the demands from the Ministry are actually met.
This, however, does not cover the outstanding bills in excess of $5,3 million as at 31 December, 2017 of which $4,6 million is for TelOne which provides the public finance management systems data lines. The Committee therefore notes with concern that the funding
provided by Treasury is inadequate for the Ministry to achieve its set objectives for the financial year under review. I thank you.
HON. P. D. SIBANDA: I am standing in for the Chairperson of the Health and Child Care Committee and therefore I am presenting the report, but before I do that, allow me to speak to two issues about the budget. Firstly Hon. Speaker, I believe that as Parliament, in terms of Section 119 of the Constitution, we are mandated to protect the Constitution and also democratic practices that are observed by the Constitution.
Hon. Speaker, I take note that in terms of the Constitution Treasury is supposed to provide resources to Provincial Councils and also local authorities. The Hon. Minister in his presentation of the 2018 budget he did not touch on those issues except to state that the Constitution has created monsters that are guzzling money from the fiscus. It is agreed that our Constitution has created a number of institutions that need funding. However, I believe that it is not entirely up to the Minister to
decide not to allocate resources to institutions that have been created by the Constitution.
The moment the Hon. Minister does that, he approaches Parliament with dirty hands. I strongly believe that the Hon. Minister is supposed to do the allocations and come to Parliament and plead with Parliament to say that those institutions maybe should not be allocated resources rather than for him to decide on his own that he is not going to allocate resources. I believe that this is a serious violation, which this House should not allow to sustain.
Secondly, the vote on Parliament, Hon. Speaker, we agreed at the Pre-Budget Seminar that there are two votes that we were not going to allow to be reduced. Unless and until the Hon. Minister gives those two votes the required amounts of money, then the budget is not going to pass. One of them was the vote for Parliament. Let me just try to show you why it is important that Parliament should get the $98 million that it requires. Since 2013, I have been in this House. Towards the end of last year, I saw newspapers trying to assess the performance of Hon.
Members in Parliament. Some Hon. Members were regarded as non-performers but I believe in that analysis, there was a gap that was left out.
Hon. Speaker, one of the methods in which a Member of Parliament can be regarded to be a performer in Parliament is to be able to speak. Now, not every Member of Parliament is able to speak in Shona, Ndebele or English. Some Members of Parliament only speak Xhosa, Tonga or Nambya. Now, because Parliament does not have interpreters in those languages, some Members of Parliament have been deprived of the right to participate and debate in this Parliament. Why Parliament does not have interpreters is because of lack of funding.
If the Hon. Minister is saying he is going to give Parliament $57 million instead of $98 million, what the Hon. Minister of Finance and Economic Planning is saying is that all Members who do not speak English, Ndebele or Shona should not participate in the debate of Parliament. He is promoting tribal hegemony in this country. I believe that Parliament should not accede to those tendencies that are coming
from the Hon. Minister. I am Tonga, I also enjoy to speak in my mother language when I am debating in Parliament. So as Vendas, when Members who are Vendas want to speak in this House, they should be able to speak in their languages. The only way they can do that is when the Hon. Minister funds Parliament to the tune of $98 million that Parliament requires so that we cannot continue to be forced to speak in Shona, Ndebele, or English – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] –
The Constitution recognises 16 languages. Therefore, Hon. Members should be aided to debate in the languages of their choice. Let us not violate Section 63 of the Constitution. As a result, I call upon this House not to pass this budget unless Parliament is accorded the $98 million that it requires for it to be able to function properly.
Coming to the Health Report, this is one of the votes where we agreed as Parliament at our Pre-Budget and Post-Budget Seminars that this budget should not pass until and unless the Ministry of Health and Child Care is given sufficient resources.
When we are talking of health, I am not talking about health of the Minister or Hon. Members of Parliament. I am talking about health of the common man, who is found in Siabuwa, Murambinda; in those rural areas. The common person who does not have any source of income, that is the health that we want to take care of. The Hon. Minister can go to Geneva and seek for health services. He can afford that but what about the old men and women who are out there in the rural areas, where do they get money to access health care, unless health care is adequately funded by Treasury.
These are our recommendations as a Committee:
1. We recommend that the budget for the Ministry of Health and
Child Care must be compliant with the Abuja Declaration. That is, it should comprise of at least 15% of the total budget. Currently it is standing at 5.8%, if we add the $30 or so million from the Health….
An Hon. Member having crossed between the Speaker and the Member on the floor.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. DZIVA): Order, order Hon. Member, you cannot cross in front of a Member on the floor.
HON. P. D. SIBANDA: If we consider the $30 or so million from the health levy, the budget does not go beyond 6.2%, that is what the Hon. Minister has allocated. This is actually a reduction from what the Ministry of Health and Child Care was allocated in the previous year. So, we recommend that at least 15% threshold should be achieved.
Hon. Speaker, in a scenario where the Minister says he does not have fiscal space to reach the 15% threshold, we recommend that in order for us to maintain our health delivery services at the level that they were last year – because the current budget of $408 million that has been allocated is actually reducing the level of health care that we were giving last year to below what we were giving last year, which means that we want health care to deteriorate beyond the levels that it was last year.
For us to maintain at the level that it was last year, your Committee recommends that Treasury should release an extra $345 million towards the Ministry of Health and Child Care, then the gap that will be founded
by development partners will assist us to at least leave the health care at the same level that it was last year.
Our third recommendation is that last year or last year but one where….
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order, order, I have an announcement to make. Vehicle AD 18920 Ford Ranger is closing the entrance. Can you please go and remove your car.
HON. P. D. SIBANDA: Thank you Madam Speaker. We proposed a Health Levy Fund in this House, I think it is last year or last year but one of 10% that is deducted from airtime. Unfortunately Hon. Speaker, from that 10% health fund is only receiving 5% and the other 5% is going somewhere else. It is my belief that when that levy fund was proposed at 10%, the intent was to ensure that we fund our health. So, as a result, there is no need for Treasury to retain the other 5%. Hon. Speaker, we recommend that the whole of the 10% that is being deducted from airtime should all go towards the funding of our health sector.
The other recommendation is that National Pharmaceutical Company (NatPharm) should be recapitalised to enable it to purchase drugs in bulk. Bulk buying of drugs will help to ensure a stable supply of drugs to public hospitals. Pharmacies also stand to benefit through buying drugs from NatPharm at lower prices. We are aware Hon. Speaker that sometime in October, 2017, the cost of buying drugs had gone up by almost 70%, such that cost of drugs was no longer reachable to an ordinary person. As a result, we recommend the capacitation of NatPharm so that it can be able to supply drugs at a lower cost to public hospitals.
Also to boost the supply of drugs, another recommendation that we are making is that Government should consider giving incentives to drug producing companies. We believe that, that way we might be able to save a lot of foreign currency if drugs are actually produced from within the country. For us to be able to do that, I believe that some kind of a package should be developed in order to capacitate our local drug manufacturing companies so that it becomes easy for us to buy drugs
from within the country rather than importing them from outside the country which is something that is actually taking a lot of foreign currency from the market.
We also recommended that in the meantime whilst we are still trying to capacitate our local drug manufacturing companies, may the Reserve Bank improve on the disbursement of foreign currency meant for purchasing of drugs by pharmacies and the National Aids Council. We are aware that the Reserve Bank says that the first priority for foreign currency is for the purchase of drugs but Hon. Speaker, the money is not actually getting to those institutions that are meant to purchase the drugs. So, we recommend that the Reserve Bank should improve its disbursement of foreign currency to those companies.
We also recommend Hon. Speaker that the staff establishment in the health sector which was last revised in 1982 when the population was only 7 million must be revised. The staff establishment of the health sector should be revised so that it matches with the disease burden and also matches the size of the population that we have. From the time
that it was revised up to now, the population has increased by over 100%. Therefore Hon. Speaker, we recommend that the staff establishment of the health sector be revised.
That being the case Hon. Speaker, we also recommend that the employment freeze that has been applied by Government should not be blanketly applied but it should make some exceptions. It should exempt such sectors as the health sector. There is no need for us to freeze employment in the health sector when the health service provider and patient ratio in this country stands at 0.07%. Therefore Hon. Speaker, we believe that the freezing of employment in the health sector should be lifted or it should be exempted.
Then finally Hon. Speaker, we propose as a Committee that some more sin-taxes should be introduced in order for us to fund the health sector. We have two examples namely; sin-tax on alcohol and tobacco, we propose that there should be a sin-tax that is introduced to fund specifically the health sector. We also propose that there be a tax which should be levied on all sugary food stuffs – drinks and food stuffs and
get that levy to fund the treatment of non-communicable diseases. We believe that Hon. Speaker, sugar is a serious contributor towards non-communicable diseases that we have in this country. As a result, in order to promote a healthy eating habit in our population, but also to fund our health sector; we should introduce a levy on all sugary food stuffs and drinks. Thank you Hon. Speaker.
HON. SIMBANEGAVI: Thank you Madam Speaker. I am going to present the report on the Portfolio Committee on Environment, Water then Tourism and Hospitality Industry. My report is going to be in two parts - first on the Ministry of Environment, Water and Climate and then on the Tourism and Hospitality Industry.
For 2018, the Ministry was allocated $85 818 000. In comparison to 2017 revised budget actual disbursements, the allocation increased by 10.6%. If the total amount is disbursed, the implication is that the fiscal achievements will slightly improve in 2018 compared to 2017 but if a proportion is disbursed as the norm from previous years, fiscal problems faced in 2017 will persist in 2018.
I will move on to the observations that the Committee has made in order for the recommendations that I will read later to make sense. The Committee observed the following in the 2018 budget. The Ministry is accruing recurrent expenditure debts amounting to $2.1 million. This is for service providers. The operational budget will only settle 19.1% of this amount leaving no funds for operations in 2018. The Ministry has also an aging fleet of 45 vehicles which require a maintenance of $100 000 and only $56 000 was allocated. The Ministry was last allocated an amount for procuring vehicles in 2010. This cripples the Ministry in executing its mandate and hinders its supervisory capacity. The budget prioritised capital expenditure as expected.
Seventy-seven million dollars was allocated for water projects and ongoing projects will continue and commencing of one new project. Therefore, the budget is developmental although the funds remain in adequate. The budget also proposed to continue with the funding of dam construction, water supply and sanitation programmes that were started in 2017. However, there is underfunding of the dams that were planned
to be completed in 2018. The amount allocated is less than the required funding for project completion. There is a finance gap of $25 million required to complete Causeway, Gwayi/Shangani and Marovanyati dams. Work will continue on water supply projects that were not completed last year in particular, Binga rural water supply and the project is likely not to be completed as the amount allocated is 33% of the total bid. There is no allocation for works at Dande dam as suggested in the previous year in order to avoid high future costs. Dande dam is a critical dam that services Guruve and Mbire districts.
The Committee observed that the Ministry had outstanding certificates for work already done on Tokwe-Mukorsi dam, which is $58million. Continued funding of the borehole drilling exercise continues and the amount that was allocated for four boreholes and four weirs per constituency is $2 million. If this funding rapporteur continues, it would enable the country to achieve one borehole per ward policy over time.
Increase in allocation on climate change programmes which is cloud-seeding – although the amount is less than the required amount, for cloud-seeding, an allocation of $500 000 has been noted. However, the allocation for the Ministry did not cater for national mitigation and adaption projects. The recommendations for these observations Madam Speaker, are that the budget is allocated a marginal increment in the operational budget for 2018 as a way of reducing the accumulation of arrears on recurrent expenditures. Retention revenue is expected to complement the consolidated revenue. However, the performance of revenue from the retention fund is not known. The Committee recommends additional funding for operational budget in order to clear arrears accumulated since 2016. The Ministry must be allocated funds to purchase new vehicles.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Member. Vehicle ADI 8920, the owner of the vehicles, may you please go and remove your vehicle; otherwise you will find it clamped. Hon. Simbanegavi, you may continue.
HON. SIMBANEGAVI: Thank you Madam Speaker. The Committee strongly recommends that the Forestry Commission should be capacitated through Government grants in order to motivate key personnel. The Committee also advocates for the Executive to clear the confusion on the management of the Aforestation Fund which is a subject of debate between TIMB and the Forestry Commission. The Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning should support the capitalisation of parastatals on a rotational basis in order to capacitate them. The Committee further recommends that dam construction of Causeway-Gwayi-Shangani and Marovanyati should be allocated more funds in order to complete them. This will help to reduce costs associated with price changes. The Ministry of Environment, Water and Climate should be encouraged to diversify the financing options for water projects in order to avoid delays in completion of projects.
The Committee also recommends that priority should be accorded to climate change issues related to national adaptation and mitigation projects that are currently underway. The Committee further
recommends that Kunzvi dam be allocated money to commence its construction since it will be a vital water source for Harare residents.
Madam Speaker, I now move on to the recommendations of the Tourism and Hospitality Industry. In terms of budgetary allocation priority, the Ministry of Tourism and Hospitality Industry is again the least prioritised this year in spite of the sector being a high impact economic activity contributing 3.5% of GDP in 2017. Definitely, the sector has the potential to contribute up to 10% of the country’s GDP if meaningful financial support is availed. Gross under-funding of co-activities such as destination marketing and key tourism programmes may adversely affect tourism receipts and the achievements of key objectives.
Zimbabwe has several heritage sites and the country should boost its economy by developing the tourism sector. Tourism is a low hanging fruit which when funded adequately will bring significant socio-economic benefits downstream of the economic value chain. Sectors that are driving the economy must be allocated more resources. If
tourism is to develop, a marked commitment in the funding of the Ministry and its implementing arm should be sustained. Key priority programmes for the Ministry should be funded timeously including domestic tourism. Community based tourism enterprises already started should be funded consistently to open up the tourism sector and to remove unnecessary illicit activities.
The Ministry must be allocated funds for the hosting of Southern Africa Women in Tourism Conference because the failure to host the conference would affect the image of the country. The Ministry must also broaden its funding options by attracting development partners and the private sector in view of resource mobilisation constraints which have persisted since 2009. The allocation of destination marketing of $1,080,000 is inadequate given the huge economic gains realised in 2017. The Committee recommends additional funding for Sanganai-Hlanganani Tourism Expo and the Harare International Carnival. ZTA should be allocated funding for National Convention Bureau programmes such as the Meeting Incentives Conference and Exhibition
(MICE) tourism in Zimbabwe. Hosting such big conferences bring in a lot of foreign currency to the country.
In conclusion Madam Speaker, the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning should allocate funds for all the must attend travel shows and fares within the first quarter of the year. I thank you Madam Speaker.
HON. MUDYIWA: I will report on the Portfolio Committee on Labour and Social Welfare. This analysis will cover the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, the Public Service Commission, ZCTU and the APEX Council. These are the departments that made some submissions to the Committee.
As a Committee, we made the following observations from the 2018 Budget:
1. There is an issue on rationalisation which was raised by the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning. It is quite a noble idea but as a Committee, we thought it does not have to be done haphazardly because this might lead to confrontation with labour
and other stakeholders. Proper mechanisms for undertaking the rationalisation exercise and safeguarding the rights of workers should be pronounced. On that note, we are recommending that the budget has to provide clear timelines and modalities for rationalisation of the Civil Service. In addition, social dialogue is required on retrenchments.
2. There was mention of the 3000 youth officers who were said not to have been catered for in the budget. Following that announcement, submissions were made that the youth officers received three months salaries in December, indicating maybe that they were on their way out but they were later advised to continue reporting for work. This makes it very unclear the status of these youth officers. Our recommendation on that is for Government to come up with a clear position on the 3000 youth officers and issue formal communication to that effect so as to avoid unnecessary anxiety on the part of the youth officers.
3. The budget is also not clear on the school teachers’ vacation leave. You might be very aware that at the moment, all teachers’ vacation
leave is suspended on the basis of reduced fiscal space but accumulated leave remains an obligation to be fulfilled by the State at a future date. So, some of us might not understand that when the schools close it is holiday on the part of the school children and not the teachers because they are called to be on duty at times and sometimes deployed to do other duties during school holidays. So, it means the teachers are always on duty, thus we are recommending as a Committee that the teachers’ vacation leave should be reinstated and provided for in the budget.
4. There is currently a four tier pricing system in the market which is causing havoc on workers’ salaries and purchasing power for all citizens and this is also compounded by cash shortages As a Committee, our recommendation is that there is urgent need to address the four tier pricing system, the cash and foreign currency shortage in the economy. Given the limited fiscal space, non-monetary benefits to incentivise…
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Members, Vehicle Prado ABL-4898 is blocking other vehicles. May the owner please go and remove the vehicle.
HON. MUDYIWA: I was saying that given the limited fiscal space, non-monetary benefits to incentivise civil servants should also be negotiated with workers’ representatives.
5. There is Statutory Instrument 125 which was enacted by the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare in 2013 to provide for non Public Service social workers to practice as probation officers but this is yet to be operationalised. The 2018 Budget presented was silent on this issue. We are concerned that this negatively impacts on the protection of children’s rights in cases before the courts. The Committee was informed that the Ministry is awaiting approval from the Treasury. We are thus recommending that expeditious approval and allocation of resources to facilitate the speedy operationalisation of Statutory Instrument 125 of 2013 be done. It is recommended that it be operationalised.
6. We have a model employment office which was allocated $34 thousand against a bid of $150 000. This remains too low. This amount is supposed to cover creation of a database particularly purchasing computers, software installation, maintenance cost and training of provincial officers. Thus, we are recommending as a Committee that adequate financial resources be made available towards creation of a database of job seekers at the model employment office.
7. Shortage of equipment and vehicles. We noted that this is negatively impacting on service delivery in the Ministry. Such important activities as labour inspections and investigations are woefully inadequate as some offices have no chairs, desks and essential basic office equipment. The current system of hiring vehicles from CMED is proving to be very expensive and unsustainable. Thus saying, despite the reduced fiscal space, adequate financial resources for the procurement of vehicles, furniture and office equipment for the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare should be prioritised in order to facilitate efficient delivery of service.
8. The department of Social Welfare in the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare has incurred significant arrears for goods and services across all its programmes. These include rentals, utilities, allowances and communication expenses. The Ministry currently faces a risk from being taken to court and possible cancellation of leases and eviction of arrears for these services if services and rentals arrears are not cleared. Thus, we are recommending that financial resources be made available to settle arrears for goods and services.
9. The Public Service Commission continues to face high office rental costs amounting to US$2 million for the year 2018. The Commission has purchased land and now require funds to construct their own offices. We are also recommending that financial resources be allocated towards construction of offices for the Public Service Commission which is cost-effective in the long run.
10. The concept of social dialogue is failing to attract external financing despite its importance, more so in the new dispensation as outlined by His Excellency. The current allocation of US$110 000
towards social dialogue through the Budget is too low. It covers only 22 percent of their expectations to sustain the operations of the Tipartite Negotiating Forum, hence the need for extra budgetary resources to supplement the current allocation.
11. Critical child welfare programmes are seriously underfunded. Although US$20 million was allocated to the Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM). It was however, 100 percent increase from the allocation of the previous year 2017. This amount however, falls short of the $120 310 828 required to sustain the programme. Cumulative arrears incurred under this programme over the years 2015 to 2017 now stand at US$87 million. In addition, we have children in difficult circumstances programme that was allocated $500 000 against a required budget of $1.5 million. Furthermore, only US$50 000 compared to a requirement US$100 000 has been allocated for children on the streets. This will adversely affect that social programme. We are therefore, recommending that the budget allocates adequate financial resources towards the support programmes for our vulnerable children.
12. The Health Assistance Fund had bided for US$12 million but was allocated mere US$2.5 million in the Budget. Cumulative arrears incurred over the years have amounted to US$7 496 874. If arrears are not cleared, the vulnerable sick may end up not accessing medical services. There is therefore, urgent need for upward review of the allocation towards the health assistance fund.
13. The Elder Persons Assistance was allocated US$550 000 out of a requirement of US$880 220, leaving a shortfall of $330 000. Arrears incurred stand at US$211 680. This also needs to be reviewed upwards. I thank you Madam Speaker.
HON. DR. MATARUSE: Thank you Madam Speaker for giving me time to present a Report of the Portfolio Committee of Higher Education, Science and Technology Development. Allow me to go straight to the recommendations.
1. There should be timeous disbursement of funds allocation to all budget items. Budget items towards operations and capital expenses
have traditionally been accorded less priority when it comes to disbursements.
2 The STEM programme should focus on training students from universities and tertiary education. This means that after paying fees for 5 136 high school students who are already in the stream, the programme should be restricted to skills training and development of students from universities and tertiary institutions. This has potential to harness benefits quickly for economic development. The Committee noted that a sub programme on cattle breeding which falls under STEM received no funding in 2018. However, the Committee recommends that ZIMDEF in collaboration with Chinhoyi University should spearhead the completion of this project.
The Committee also discovered that cattle breeding can be viewed as a private investment project that can attract private players rather than funding – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Members. Can Hon. Dr. Mataruse be heard in silence? Hon. Minister of Finance, I want you to be listening to the Reports by the Chairpersons.
HON. DR. MATARUSE: 4. The high performance computer programme remains key to modernisation and economic development. This budget item received no funding in 2018. The Committee recommended that the high performance computer be given US$6 million for space expansion so that the Chinese Government owns up to the US$5 million grant for equipment they promised. In addition, the high performance computer programme should collaborate with other service providers of related services to avoid duplication of efforts.
The Cadetship programme owes $35 million to training institutions. The Ministry requested for $10 million to clear the outstanding debt. The Committee recommends Treasury to clear the debt as it affects the running of the institutions. The Committee also noted that although scholarships are now under the responsibility of a newly created Ministry for scholarships, the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary
Education, Science and Technology Development still needs to clear outstanding scholarship issues, including ensuring that all outstanding stipends and agreements are honoured.
In addition, the Committee recommended future awards of scholarships to target local universities and colleges unless capacity to train the specific fields is not locally available. This will help the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe in reducing pressure on foreign currency allocations. The Committee also suggests that upgrading of some local universities to international standards will help so that parents send their children at local universities. This will also reduce pressure on foreign currency resources. The Committee also recommended efficient control and financial accountability systems to the Ministry’s statutory bodies such as colleges, universities, ZimDef and other specialised projects to limit leakage of resources. Thank you very much.
HON. MUSANHI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I am going to present a report from the Ministry of Education, Sports and Recreation. The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education is directly
responsible for one third of the population’s education in Zimbabwe, yet the budget does not seem to show that responsibility. If you look at the budget that was allocated to the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, you find that 93% of the budget is going towards the employment payments, leaving 7% of the budget for capital expenditure.
The teacher to pupil ratio is always going high. Funding burden is given to NGOs and parents. So, this must be looked at on the budget so that it could be revised towards looking at how important the Ministry is. Glen View Primary School is a shining example of how a school is supposed to be running. We observed that if all schools are run in that way, the Ministry will not spend a lot of money in terms of allocating funds to schools etc. The Committee recommends that the Ministry of Primary and Secondary occupies Government space and to eradicate the cost of rentals because they are in arrears right now and they want to pay rentals. So, because of that, we recommend that they occupy Government space buildings.
Budget allocation must exclude employment costs. We recommended that in future, I think the employment costs must be put direct to the Ministry of Public Service so that the budget will reflect the actual capital expenditure that is going to be used by the Ministry of Education. More teachers should be recruited in light of the growing learner population. Six hundred teachers are to be recruited and priority to ECD teachers should be given. The burden of employment costs for ECD teachers should be given to the Government and not parents and donors.
On Ministry of Sports, Arts and Recreation - Accumulated rentals in light of unutilised space of Government buildings. We have observed this on all Ministries. It looks like they are accumulating rentals from rented space and yet there are a lot of free Government space buildings which they are supposed to use and stop utilising the scarce resources that are needed for something else. The Minister’s car rental which is bleeding the Ministry must be paid by the Office of the President and Cabinet than to bleed the Ministry’s scarce resources that was allocated.
As we have said, there is a lot of free space in Government buildings, we recommend that rented space must be occupied in Government buildings. A Statutory Instrument to increase lottery entitlement from 5% to 15% must be in place. The Ministry of Home Affairs and Culture must honour the release of these funds to the Ministry of Sports and Culture. I thank you.
HON. CHASI: Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. My report which is the Committee on Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs, covers the following entities. The Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs and the following Independent Commissions, the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission, the Judicial Services Commission, the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission and finally the Prosecuting Authority.
I turn to the Ministry of Justice - there has generally been a positive trend regarding the budget for this Ministry which has increased by 586% in 2015, when it stood at 18,4 million and now stands at 126,5
million. So, we wish to acknowledge the assistance that the Minister has been giving to this particular Ministry.
Observations
The Ministry heavily relies on donor funds and I want to repeat the comments that have been made by previous Chairpersons regarding their own entities to say the primary responsibility for funding Ministries must fall on the Government. In this respect, I want to specifically refer to the issue of the constitutional alignment. Mr. Speaker, this is a very important programme which is way behind and which the Government needs to give very serious attention to. In this respect, the Committee acknowledged the assistance by the European Union, in particular to the tune of 1,500 Euros towards this programme. The Committee is hopeful that when the funds are released, they will be released in the same amount and that the release will be timeous in order to ensure that this very important constitutional programme is addressed.
Your Committee Mr. Speaker Sir, was concerned by a number of subscriptions that Government has to pay through the Ministry. For
example, the Government has to pay subscription to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia as well as a similar tribunal for Rwanda. The recommendation was that Government must look into the relevance of some of these entities before agreements or treaties are signed so that Government does not assume huge payments for which there is very little to see. The Committee recommended that the Ministry must go and look at each and every one of the entities to which they subscribe and demonstrate to this Committee the value that this country is getting from those subscriptions.
The Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services; is a very important body Mr. Speaker, that falls under this Ministry but which is perennially in very difficult financial situation. The department looks after people who are not free to get food for themselves or to clothes themselves. It has made efforts to engage in farming and significant amounts of money are required to re-tool their farming activities. The recommendation that the Committee has made is that consideration must be given by Government to allow this department to engage, maybe in
contract farming where people who have their own resources can come and use their farms and then the profits could be shared.
The department of Deeds is very important Mr. Speaker. The Committee was aware that over a very long time there has been debate… - [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] - Mr. Speaker, I would like the Minister, particularly to hear this one.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order, order! Hon. Minister, he is requesting you to learnt your ears to this particular one.
HON. CHASI: I am sure the Minister is familiar with this problem. The Deeds office is a cash cow for the Ministry and the Government. Treasury allows them to retain 5% of the money that they make. That department is making efforts to computerize so that it is able to scan documents, deeds and other intellectual property related registration documents, that is where the money comes from.
The Committee highly recommends that the Minister considers either increasing the retention level or giving that department more money to enable it to make more money for Government. That
discussion is a perennial one and we have asked and recommended that there must be a discussion which is based on a demonstration by the Ministry to Treasury as to how much they can make on the basis of the money that the Minister or Treasury can give to them.
I want to emphasise Mr. Speaker, that intellectual property rights are a very important aspect of our ease of doing business. People that will come and invest would want to know they are able to register their property rights and that they will be protected. So, this is a very critical element which Government needs to give huge priority.
Mr. Speaker, Zimbabwe houses the African Regional Intellectual Property Organisation in which we invested as early as 1983. We should, as a country, be able to capitalise on that investment in order to make sure that we get help in terms of improving our economic situation as a country.
Allow me Mr. Speaker Sir, to now turn to the Judicial Services Commission. This Commission has done very well. The work that the Commission has done throughout the country is visible for everyone to
see. Many courts have been built throughout the country and the quality of those courts is also very good. Our concern with this particular Commission is the fact that magistrates have not received sufficient attention to their welfare. The distinction between the conditions of service or the welfare of magistrates generally and those at the superior courts is so glaring but apart from that, the problem is that the freeze on promotions and so forth has meant that magistrates remain junior and yet in terms of the law, they can only pass a certain sentence if they are at a certain level. So, the recommendation is that the Minister could look at that aspect in order to allow upward movement of magistrates so that we have more senior, regional magistrates and so forth, who are able to apply stiffer sentences when certain cases demand that position.
Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission
Another very important Commission which necessarily must be all over the country. The Commission has serious workload but is unable to be visible throughout the country as a result of budgetary constraints. The fuller details of that budget are very clear in the report. There has
been an increase of 53% which came to an allocation of $3 341 000. The Minister must be thanked for that given the limits on the fiscal space. The Committee implores Treasury to unfreeze approved posts so that the Commission can fill up critical posts for effective delivery. This is very important in light of the forthcoming elections. The Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission will be a very important actor in those elections.
The Committee also recommends Treasury to consider increasing its allocation towards subscriptions and general elections. The same recommendation that we have given to the Ministry to say that it must look at all subscriptions and be able to demonstrate to this House and to the country generally that the money that is being spent is necessary and that we are getting value. The Committee also wishes finally on this particular Commission to implore Treasury to timeously resource it given that the elections are very close by and a lot of preparatory work will need to be done.
National Peace and Reconciliation Commission
An extremely important commission for this country to go forward without conflict.
HON. MUNENGAMI: On a point of order. I think you can just have a look at Hon. Mlambo. Maybe he looks tired seeing that he is a former minister – I do not know. There is that need for a stress clinic or counselling clinic which we have been agitating for. Now we see the reason why it is important. We really appreciate the debate which we are doing and we appreciate all the other Hon. Members just to pay attention instead of us taking a nap. I thank you.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Thank you very much Hon. Member.
HON. CHASI: I was saying Mr. Speaker, that I will now talk about the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission, the latest kid on the block with regards to the commissions. A very important Commission which already has lost three years of work as it is time bound in terms of the Constitution. The work that it was expected to do within the 10 years is still expected to be done now in the remaining
time. I cannot over emphasise the need for Treasury to particularly give specific attention to this Commission and ensure that the funds are released immediately to allow them to begin to do their work. They have been given a budget of $1 399 000. This is hardly anywhere near what is necessary although it represents an increase of 22%. For the past years, the commissioners in this commission have been working from their houses.
HON. MLISWA: On a point of order. I was due to give a report but my point of order is on the allegations that I made on Hon. Shumba. I would like to withdraw them. I thank you.
HON. CHASI: I am sure the Hon. Member’s withdrawal is in line with the work of the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission – the avoidance of conflict. I was saying a very important point that the commissioners are working from home, this is completely undesirable. Government must make funds available to ensure that this independent commission is able to function from proper accommodation which is accessible to the public. The public cannot be going to the houses of
commissioners to go and make their reports or complaints and so forth. This is a very critical matter which I will also discuss in connection with the National Prosecuting Authority.
Recommendations of the Committee, we need more money to be put into this Commission. It has a lot of backlog which needs to be dealt with. It is very important going into the future that all forms of conflict that have occurred in this country are resolved and also that going forward, we avoid conflict and this is the fundamental work of the Commission.
Office space and condition of service benefits which were spelt out in contracts for the commissioners have not been met. We need committed people in this commission, people who are happy to be working in the environment. Whatever the commissioners were promised must be accorded. There is also a need that we as a country look at the life of this commission
[Time limit].
We look at the three years that has been lost and that as a country we make a decision as to how we want this to be structured.
I will not dwell too much on the Electoral Commission. I think it is one of those commissions that are discussed on a daily basis except to say that there is need for Treasury to ensure that all the funds that are necessary to complete registration and all the other preparatory works towards elections and for the elections themselves are made available well in time so that the commission can prepare for the elections. The Minister must be congratulated and thanked for ensuring that there is a separate Vote for ZEC as opposed to what transpired in the past.
National Prosecuting Authority
This is the last part of my report. This is a new kid on the block. Any business that starts with front loading of cots, the NPA is currently housed and it has to be housed outside Government buildings because it is an independent body that would like to maintain its independence. It is at Corner House – very expensive accommodation. Government needs to look at the pros and cons of either buying a building for this entity or
consider getting on to a programme to build offices for these commissions.
In light of the high rental expenses, the Committee recommends the purchasing of building or office space. The independence of the NPA should be asserted by ensuring that they have adequate financial resources. There is current talk under the current administration, there is a very clear thrust to deal with corruption and from the delivery by the Chief Justice yesterday, it was clear that there is a plan to have special corruption courts and all those will need to be resourced by law officers who are adequately compensated.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. MUTOMBA): Order, order Hon. Member, your time is up.
HON. CHASI: I am sorry Mr. Speaker, you will realise that I had so many independent departments but my last point is that there is a very clear discrepancy of treatment between magistrates and prosecutors. If one goes out, say to Masvingo, you will find a provincial magistrate and a chief law officer there. The magistrate may have a vehicle and the
chief law officer will not have a vehicle. With regards to judges as well Mr. Speaker, their conditions need to be relooked at to ensure that those judges do not hike.
HON. T. DUBE: Hon. Speaker Sir, I am presenting my 2018 post budget analysis for Zimbabwe Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Defence, Home Affairs and Security Services.
The Committee on Defence, Home Affairs and Security Services has an oversight role over the Ministries of Defence, Security and War Veterans; Home Affairs and Culture and the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC). During 2018 post budget review, your Committee analysed the budget allocation for the Ministries of Defence, Security, War Veterans; Home Affairs and Culture and ZACC and received oral submissions from the Ministry officials and Commission representatives.
Several observations were made from the budget allocation about the ministries and the Commission’s funding, needs and gaps and the performance implications of the budget allocations. These observations
culminated into key recommendations which if implemented, will improve the operational efficiency of these ministries and the Commission. Below is the economic analysis of the allocation to each Ministry and ZACC.
The Ministry is made up of civil service personnel, Zimbabwe Defence Forces and a combination of the Army, Air Force services and the Zimbabwe National War Veterans Affairs. It managed to achieve its set targets in 2017 despite the funding challenges which affected it. The Ministry is determined to achieve its constitutional and statutory obligations in 2018 financial year and has a set of priorities that have to be fulfilled. In 2018, the Ministry was allocated a total of $420.4 million of which $322.1 million over employment needs leaving only $98.3 million for operations and capital projects. This allocation of $98.3 million is only 30% of ideal requirements of $325.9 million which was bided to cater for prioritised expenditure instead of the Ministry’s excluding employment costs and outstanding debt.
The Ministry has an outstanding cumulative debt amounting to $69.4 million which if paid from $98.3 ….
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order, order, Hon. Member, can you stick to the recommendations of the Committee?
HON. T. DUBE: Alright, I will go to the recommendations. After an analysis of the Ministry’s budget, your Committee made the following recommendations:-
3.1Treasury should take over the Ministry’s outstanding debt and pay the Ministry’s service providers their dues including war veterans school fees, arrears dating back to the third term of 2015 so that operations earmarked for 2018 are fully funded.
3.2 Treasury should prioritise adequately funding critical expenditure items such as institutional provisions which include uniforms, rations, medical services, accommodation, training and development expenses.
3.3 Expenditure items that result in increased internal capacities and efficiency of the Ministry must be fully funded. These are:-
i. Training of the Defence Forces,
ii. Provision of training needs that include training material, facilities and equipment. In that same vein, procurement and regular maintenance of state of the art technical military equipment and facilities should be prioritized and adequately funded to improve internal capacity and efficiency and lengthen the military equipment’s life span,
iii. Servicing the Defence Force’s vehicles and other mobile equipment,
iv. Maintenance and servicing of the force’s aircraft (including complete engine overhaul for aircrafts),
3.4 The Ministry of Defence should be exempted from the recruitment freeze and be allowed to recruit and train new staff to prevent skills and human resource gap.
3.5 Treasury should target fully funding the completion of housing and other PSIP projects which have high impact on the Ministry’s long run. These projects are :-
Dzivarasekwa Housing Project;
Solomon Mujuru Cadet Accommodation in Gweru, and –
[HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order, order, less noise in the House Hon. Members.
HON. T. DUBE: Similarly, other high impact activities at Manyame Airbase, Jason Ziyaphapha Moyo Airbase and Josiah Tungamirai Airbase should be fully funded.
Conclusion
The Ministry of Defence, Security and War Veterans is very important since its mandate ensures the necessary conditions for all other ministries to function well. Therefore, its operations should be fully funded to the tune of $400 million (excluding employment costs).
This will guarantee the nation peace and a business environment which is investor friendly. Failure to adequately fund this Ministry results in serious operational challenges and have multiple negative effects to all other ministries in Zimbabwe.
The ZACC has a very important mandate of combating corruption, theft and abuse of power and other improprieties in Zimbabwe through investigation, public education, prevention and cause prosecution after thorough investigations. It achieved a lot in 2017 with limited financial support from Treasury and is set to achieve more targets set for 2018, hence requires adequate funding.
The Commission was restricted by Treasury to an expenditure target of $2.469 million during the 2018 budget consultations. This allocation disregarded the Commission’s huge but achievable expenditure targets earmarked for 2018 which are critical in the whole country.
The final allocation of the Commission for its 2018 budget was $3 351 million including employment costs. This allocation is 0.07% of the
total National Budget and is far below the international best practices of allocating at least 5% of the National Budget to the Anti-Corruption agencies to cater for recurrent and capital expenditures. The Commission bided for $17.4 million excluding employment costs.
We recommend that ZACC should be allocated adequate funds so that it fills in all the 141 vacancies so that effective structures and systems are set up and operationalised as soon as possible. Sub offices in Midlands, Bulawayo, Masvingo and Manicaland will be set up, manned and operationalised.
The Commission’s Budget should be increased up to the amount that was bided. This means that Treasury should allocate ZACC its required $17.4 million to cater for all its operational costs for 2018.
Allocation for employment costs should be urgently reviewed upwards so that ZACC staff is paid in line with salaries and other conditions of service of other Anti-Corruption Commissions in the SADC region.
The Commission is able to attract, retain and effectively utilize specialist staff skills with ideal qualifications to investigate corruption cases that are complex in nature.
Temptation to accept bribes from corrupt criminals by the Commission’s officers is reduced and rather the Commission’s officers will be motivated to discharge their duties.
In conclusion, it should be noted that the ZACC is the lead institution in fighting corruption in Zimbabwe in this new dispensation. Therefore, the Commission should be fully funded so that it sets all the necessary structures and systems required and effectively deliver on its mandate to curb Zimbabwe’s number one enemy – corruption. I thank you.
HON. PARADZA: I rise to present a report for two ministries of Foreign Affairs and Industry. I am going to marry the two in terms of my preamble because their operations are sort of intertwined.
From our observation, Zimbabwe right now has a broken brand and needs some rebranding. These budgets were done before these
ministries were configured and therefore, my Committee urges the Minister to have a re-look at the whole budget to make sure that he factors in the rebranding and also the new mandates. For example, in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; there is now a new responsibility to do with international trade but the budget does not cater for that. We are happy though that you allocated $49 million to the Ministry from last year’s $35 million.
However, as I have said before, you did not take into account a lot of work which is going to be done in terms of rebranding Zimbabwe and re-engagement with the international community. The President was very clear when he said that Zimbabwe is now 17 years behind. Therefore, we need to catch up. In order to catch up, we need to hire some consultancy to make sure that we rebrand Zimbabwe.
My Committee also observes that there is confusion within the two ministries because they did not have clear mandates. The Office of the President (OPC) did not give them clear mandates when they came to present the budget to us. There is still some kind of nostalgia about the
old regime. They do not appear to fit into this new dimension where the President is now talking about a new dispensation. That needs to be done as soon as possible. We are happy that the Executive saw it fit to remove the Department of International Trade from Industry and put it to Foreign Affairs. Foreign Affairs already has the structures. We have missions across the globe and we can use these missions to make sure that we re-engage, rebrand and assist in attracting FDIs and also to mobilise our diasporans to make sure that they come and invest home. We are saying that as soon as possible, OPC must make sure that this department is removed from the Ministry of Industry.
In terms of our recommendations, the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Enterprise Development, because it has some added responsibilities has been given the mandate to run the Indigenisation Department and also the Enterprise Department which used to be the SMEs. This work is what is needed right now if we are to improve this economy within the 100 day period.
We recommend that the Ministry comes up with programmes for domestic resource mobilisation with clear investment strategies. For example, we can have Zimbabweans who are locally based pulling their resources together and buying into the available companies. We have an example of what happened with NRZ – these are Zimbabweans who have invested in the NRZ and also the Government and the Ministry must put into practical use the new Indigenisation Policy and look for serious investors to resuscitate strategic industries such as ZISCO, NRZ, Hwange Colliery, David Whitehead, CSC and others. The Government must also come up with a clear Diaspora Policy with incentives. In other words, we need to incentivise our Zimbabweans who are either working or staying abroad so that it is attractive for them to come and reinvest here in Zimbabwe.
As it is now, the money which is coming in; these are just remittances which are for domestic use, we now need money for our industrial development. For that, we need the Government to come out
with clear incentives which are the same as those given to foreign investors through FDIs. We need that for our own Zimbabweans.
The department of Enterprise Development, as I said, these are for SMEs and should come up with programmes which will help the informal sector and make sure that this sector graduates from being small enterprises to become big industries and businesses. This should be our focus now in the next 100 days. The Government, through the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Enterprise Development should also identify priority areas as the pillars and engines of growth and provide the necessary support.
Mr. Speaker, there is another issue of IDC, which has sort of lost its mandate. The Minister was saying we must assist in liquidating IDC debts and has allocated $7 million towards a bottomless pit. We are saying no, instead of giving that money to IDC to liquidate part of its debt, that $7million, Hon. Minister must be given to – (Hon. Gonese having been speaking to the Hon. Minister of Finance and Economic Planning) – please do not disturb the Minister, we want him to listen.
That money, the $7 million must be given to the Special Economic Zones to make sure that they work.
The Zimbabwe Investment Authority Act must be aligned to fit the new dispensation. Right now we are told that so many companies have come and projects have been approved but we do not know how many were rejected and for what reason. So, it must be clear. This Act is now going to be under the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Enterprise Development. So, the Ministry has been given a huge mandate; that is why we were saying that the Department of International Trade must be taken away from them so that they concentrate on making sure that our domestic economy is resuscitated.
We have the issue to do with the One Stop Shop; this was introduced during the GNU and the former President opened this during Hon. Mashakada’s time but nothing has happened. So, we are saying that this is high time within these 100 days to make sure that this is resuscitated so that investors come to a single desk and ensure that they get the licensing withing five days. You know the Dangote issue, where
is he now? He has gone because of these issues where there is a lot of bureaucracy. This is no longer needed in this new trajectory. The National Competitive Commission’s role must be redefined to make sure that it suits into this new thinking.
In terms of Foreign Affairs, as I said, we are happy that the Department of International Trade is now part of them and the new thrust must be – this has been said by His Excellency that we must now shift from political diplomacy to economic diplomacy. This must be intensified, that is why I was calling on the Minister to increase that budget so that we retrain our ambassadors, men and women who are manning our missions there so that they understand the mood we have here in order to improve our economy.
We are happy that the Minister talked about rationalisation of our embassies and this is going to save a lot. However, we must also think of opening up new frontiers. We are talking of businesses which can come from countries like Dubai and so on, to open up a consulate in Dubai. We have countries like Turkey, which are eager to invest in
Africa and Zimbabwe is a proper destination because, as I said, our policies as enunciated by His Excellency are now clear. He talked about having free elections, the rule of law and zero tolerance to corruption. These alone are incentives, which we can now use as we look for Foreign Direct Investments.
Mr. Speaker, my Committee also recommends that the Ministry and other relevant Government Departments must draft a manual that captures this rebranding and reengagement of Zimbabwe. We must have a manual where even all the Hon. Members, if asked, will be able to say yes, here is the situation in Zimbabwe. In other words, it is what we call the elevator kind of approach…
Hon. Mukwangwariwa having left his seat to sit on the front bench was asked to go back to his seat by the Temporary Speaker.
HON. PARADZA: Mr. Speaker, as we discuss about our observation and recommendation as your Committee, Ministry Officials attend some meetings in foreign lands; these are good summits but within these 100 day period, we must have a conference on Zimbabwe to
make sure that we attract investment where we are going to invite potential investors to come here. We can have that conference here or elsewhere in Europe or Asia.
Mr. Speaker, the Government should allow the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation to engage the services of brand trade and investment experts. I was talking to Hon. Minister Chinamasa about rebranding and reengagement but we need experts to do this. As Zimbabweans we cannot do it, so we need experts and money to fund that so that we can hire consultants to help us in this.
In line with the new trajectory Mr. Speaker, the Government should redefine its foreign and trade policies in order to establish the country’s global trade priorities and pursue a robust, reciprocal, bilateral and multilateral trade, taxation and investment relations through regional and international trade agreements.
Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, your Committee is of the view that the time is now for us as Zimbabweans to make sure that we come together and improve our economy. The world is continuously changing and
does not wait for Zimbabwe. Therefore, what is needed is to do all these things with speed. To this end Mr. Speaker, your Committee welcomes the stance taken by His Excellency to work with all countries which are interested in doing business with Zimbabwe. It is no longer the Look East Policy now. We must now look everywhere for those countries which have the capacity to work with us here in order for us to improve our economy.
As a Committee, as I said, we want to thank Hon. Minister Chinamasa for increasing this year’s budget and we are grateful for that. I want to conclude with this quote from Warren Buffet who is a United States of America investment tycoon. He says, ‘Someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago’. That is what we should do Minister. I thank you.
HON. MUNENGAMI: Thank you Hon. Speaker. I rise here to report on the Portfolio Committee on Mines and Energy, a report which Hon. Mliswa just gave me 20 minutes ago. Like you said earlier on, I
will go straight to the recommendations. I will start with the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development.
The Committee on Mines and Energy is of the view that the 2018 national budget should have fully incorporated inputs from the Portfolio Committee on Mines and Energy and other stakeholders in the mining sector. The Committee is also of the view that there were some outstanding areas which, if addressed, will unlock the full potential of the industry, deepen the inclusivity and maximise its contribution to the social economic development of the country. Some of the outstanding measures which the Committee strongly thinks will raise revenue in the sector and contribute to the economy growth include the following:-
Beneficiation penalty tax framework
The Committee welcomes the deferment of the export tax on unbeneficiated platinum to 1January, 2019. The new penalty tax framework which takes effect on 1st January 2019 only considers precious metal processing as a sufficient condition for any producer to be excluded from the penalty tax. Thus, it implies that for any mining
company to avoid the penalty tax. it must simultaneously invest in mining development, set up smelter facilities, install base metal refineries as well as installing the precious metal refinery before commencing all extraction. This appears not only as punitive but also impossible as investors need time to recover their capital before reinvesting it to the next stage of the value chain.
The practicality of the beneficiation tax framework must be improved by granting investors some tax break or tax holidays between each stage of the beneficiation value chain to allow them time to recover committed capital so that they can reinvest into the next stage of the beneficiation value chain.
As a Committee we propose the following period breaks for the beneficiation tax framework.
Mine Development - 7 to 10 years, depending on the nature of the project. The time frame must be sufficient enough for the company to develop mine and build sufficient feed stock for beneficiation.
Smelter facility - 7 to 10 years, depending on the nature of the project. This period covers construction of the smelter of at least two years and five to seven years to recoup invested capital
Base metal refinery – 7 to 10 years also. The time frame covers a minimum of two years for construction of the BMR and five to seven years to recoup invested capital. It is further proposed that individual company’s unique circumstances such as the life of the mine and size of the assets must be carefully weighed into the time line considerations. We are also imploring the Government and platinum producers to agree on a precious metal tour treatment facility for Zimbabwe as in the case of Fidelity Printers and Refineries Gold Processing. This would reduce burdened platinum producers and ensure huge capital savings that can be deployed in developing new mines and create more jobs.
Deductibility of royalty for taxation
Current Government policy in Zimbabwe does not allow royalty as a tax expense, thus significantly increasing the effective tax, undermining the competitiveness of Zimbabwe as a destination of
investment. Traditionally, as in the case in all countries, royalties which are levied on gross revenue are considered a direct cost and qualify as a cost for tax purposes.
The Chamber of Mines have also raised the matter with the Minister of Finance and Economic Development and have submitted findings of their survey on the same which shows that the majority of mine jurisdictions, including renowned mining countries such as Australia, Canada, China and others allow royalties as a tax expense.
THE TEMPORAY SPEAKER: Hon. Member, could you highlight your recommendations from your Committee.
HON. MUNENGAMI: These are the recommendations. Unfortunately, I think they are a bit long. Like I said, I have been given this report just now, so I am just going through the recommendations as they are. I will try to shorten maybe some of them.
Royalty on diamonds
Royalty on diamonds was retained at 15%. We appeal to Government to reduce the royalty rate for diamonds to 10% with a view to restore viability in the diamond sector and also in line with best practices.
Review of the mining fees
Ground rental fees for diamonds were reduced from $3000 per hectare per year to $225. We appeal to Government to consider a comprehensive review of the existing fee structures in line with proposals from stakeholders in the mining industry in order to restore viability of the industry.
Restoring viability in large scale gold sectors – that is another recommendation.
Foreign payment challenges
This must be adequately addressed. The mining industry continues to experience foreign exchange challenges which must be adequately addressed. The mining industry continues to experience foreign
exchange challenges which have manifested in delays in foreign payments for importation of critical raw materials for production and we appeal as a Committee for Treasury to ensure that the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe increases mining company retention threshold for platinum, gold and chrome to around 40% to ensure they import adequate raw materials on time. I think these were the recommendations for the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development.
Now lastly, I will go to the Ministry of Energy and Power Development. The recommendations are as follows:-
Priority to the importation of fuel in the allocation of foreign currency
The Committee noted with concern the foreign payment challenges which have been faced by fuel importers in the country and the Committee recommends that the Government prioritises the importation of fuel in view of its importance in the production value chain process.
Ensure timeous disbursement of allocated funds
The late release of funds has a negative effect on the Ministry’s budget as prices might rise before the Ministry makes payments. Therefore, it is critical for the Minister, in the 2018 projects such as the planned purchase of the ZIMRE centre building and the development of cadastre system, to be disbursed timeously.
Ensure the speedy implementation of the Gwanda solar energy project
This project had actually attracted a lot of majority, especially people in the country including, MPs. The situation was worsened by the media houses which provided conflicting statements regarding the project starters. Some of the reports have sited irregularities in the manner in which the tender was awarded and the payment of the initial $5 million paid to the contractor that is Inter Track. The Committee is concerned to know that the work that has been done and the amount paid to the contractor does not tally. To win back the people’s confidence, it is recommended that the implementation of the project moves with speed so that tangible results are seen instead of continued reports that
the project is still at the preparation stage of the project cycle. The Committee further recommends that the Procurement Regulatory Authority Board should move with speed in coming up with a framework that will ensure that in future controversies that surround the Gwanda solar project do not occur again, such as the payment made in the absence of a performance bond.
In conclusion Hon. Speaker, while the Committee on Mines welcomes the budget allocation to the two ministries, the Committee strongly feels that the potential of the mining and the energy sector to optimize their contribution to the socio economic development of the country can be fully unlocked if Treasury plays its part. This can be done through the timeously releasing of funds and resolving a number of outstanding issues which the Committee has been raising during the past 3 years. Treasury should seriously consider the concerns raised by the Committee since most of them were emanating from its interactions with various stakeholders in both the mining and energy sector. This is the end of the report Hon. Speaker.
HON. MADANHA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I rise to present a report of the Portfolio Committee on Local Government, Rural and Urban Development on the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing. Mr. Speaker Sir, the Ministry’s function priorities are in the area of policy and administration, partial planning, local governance, construction, maintenance and management, national housing delivery and disaster risk management. I want to start by thanking the Hon. Minister of Finance for having increased this year’s budget as compared to 2017 budget which was US$95.9 million. This year’s budget is US$132 781 000.
As a Committee, we are certain that the Ministry will meet its requirements and certainly improve on service delivery. Our observations as a Committee are as follows: -
The Committee observed that there is urgent need to restructure the Ministry’s top management. Now that the two Ministries were merged into one, there is need to restructure the top management.
The other observation is that for the fifth year running, Treasury continues to be in breach of the Constitution by not providing the constitutional 5% allocations to provinces and local authorities in line with Section 301 (3) of the Constitution and this is affecting service delivery of the local authorities.
The Committee also observed that there is still centralization of power within the Ministry which is against the requirements of chapter 14 of the Constitution which calls for devolution of power to local authority and provincial councils.
On this note, the Committee has also noted the duplication on liquor licensing by the Ministry and local authorities.
The Committee also observed that Government is the biggest debtor to local authorities and urged the Ministry to address this issue. Government’s nonpayment of these debts is depriving local authorities of much needed revenue thereby negatively affecting service delivery.
The Committee raised great concern over ZUPCO as a parastatal. ZUPCO has now become a liability and owes a lot of money to many local authorities across the country in rentals. The Ministry must privatise ZUPCO according to the pronouncement of the budget statement on disposal of non-performing parastatals.
The Committee also observed that the Ministry should maximize its revenue collection on the intrinsic value of land. The Committee noted with concern the fact that the condition of roads has greatly deteriorated over the years. The disbursements made by ZINARA were said to be inadequate to address the challenges in road maintenance and rehabilitation.
The Committee felt that ZINARA disbursements to Councils should be fully utilised for the intended purposes without any misappropriations. The Ministry should also look outside the box and embrace the Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) and also the Built-Operate and Transfer (BOT) initiatives.
The Committee question the constitutionality of the role of the Ministry in regards to the operations and functioning of traditional chiefs as Section 305 (3) of the Constitution stipulates that separate revenue and expenditure must be given to the Council of Chiefs, hence Treasury should provide for the Chief’s Council, Vote for it to carry its mandate independently.
The Committee noted the inadequacy of funds allocated by Treasury for the acquisition of vehicles for all chiefs with only US$2 000 070 allocated out of a bid of US$9m.
The Committee commends the importance of the spatial planning kit which will allow computerization of information that will help to define all characteristics of land which is part of E-Governance. Full operation of the spatial kit will reduce field trips thereby saving resources.
The Committee also noted with concern that the prepared water meter system might be unaffordable to the generality of the public and some form of subsidy should be unlocked by the Government
that will enhance delivery by the local authorities and access by citizens of quality and enough quantity of water and cities.
The Committee advised the Ministry to seek investors in such a vital area which will ensure provision of clean, affordable and adequate water supply.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee’s recommendations are as follows:
There must serious and practical measures taken to deal with the scourge of land barons that are becoming a menace to local authorities and are impeding on proper housing delivery.
The structure of the Ministry should be reviewed to match the new Ministry which is a product of two matched ministries that of Local Government and Rural Development.
The Civil Protection Unit should be well funded to deal with natural disasters which are ever increasing due to climate change.
As guided by Chapter 14 of the Constitution, the Ministry should allow local authorities to operate independently from Central Government and should expedite the alignment of Local Government legislation to the Constitution especially establishment of the administrative framework.
The privatisation and joint ventures of non-performing parastatals as in the case of ZUPCO is also recommended. The Ministry should look for alternative sources of funding in order to carry out key operations like water provision, road maintenance and waste management. Also local authorities need to be capacitated in their activities or duties.
Treasury should allocate a separate Vote for the Council of Chiefs in terms of Section 305 (3) to make sure that the secretariat for Council of Chiefs is set up. This would bring independence of the Chief’s Council; hence the Chief Council’s Vote should be a standalone according to the Constitution.
The Ministry should hand over liquor licence operations to local authorities. While they move towards E-Government through online liquor licence application is welcome, the rest of the process is still centralised in Harare.
The Committee recommends that the whole process be decentralised to enhance convenience and efficient thus avoiding duplication of duties. The Ministry of Finance should comply with the Constitution and allocate 5% of the national budget to provinces and local authorities in accordance with Section 301 (3). It is very clear from the Constitution that the provision does not need an Act of Parliament for it to be effected.
The Committee recommends the set up of urban public mass transport systems to solve the current problem of commuter-omnibus and unregistered taxis. This calls for serious considerations and effort towards embracing PPPs and BOTs. The Ministry should continue monitoring the local authorities to
ensure that they adhere to the 30/70% principle. That is, 30% must go towards salaries and 70% towards service delivery for all revenue generated.
The Ministry should also advocate for the payment and disbursement to local authorities of their dues in terms of the Public Health Act and ZINARA allocations.
Treasury must make sure Government departments pay dues to local authorities’ service delivery in order for the local authorities to function properly.
Treasury should also allocate money for the partial planning kit.
Finally, the Committee recommends that for full and expedient alignment of laws with the Constitution, more funds should be availed as the allocation of $15 000.00 is insufficient for any meaningful stakeholder engagement.
In conclusion Mr. Speaker Sir, the Committee remains seized with the continued non-adherence to the Constitution by Treasury with
regards to the constitutional provisions relating to Section 301(3) on the 5% of the national budget allocation to provinces and local authorities and Section 301 (1) for the capital grants. This severely constrains the service delivery by local authorities. The Committee continues to categorically make it clear that Section 301 (1) is self explainatory and should be implemented. Further, the alignment of local government laws to the Constitution need to be expedited. The Ministry needs to come up with innovative ways in resource mobilisation. I thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC PLANNING (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. Speaker Sir, I understand there is still one Chairperson yet to report. So accordingly, I move that the debate do not adjourn. I have been promised and am optimistic that we will conclude the debate tomorrow; that is the submissions of the Chairperson, debate on the budget as well as concluding the matter tomorrow. Then on Thursday, we can then have Committee of Supply. I move that the debate do now adjourn.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 17th January, 2018.
On the motion of THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC PLANNING (HON. CHINAMASA), the House adjourned at Twenty-Nine Minutes past Five o’clock p.m.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Thursday, 11th January, 2018
The National Assembly met at a Quarter-past Two o’clock p.m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. SPEAKER in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENTS BY THE HON. SPEAKER
ERROR ON THE ORDER PAPER
THE HON. SPEAKER: I wish to draw the attention of the House to an error on your Order Paper where notice of presentation of the Public Health Bill [H.B. 7, 2017] was inadvertently omitted from today’s Order Paper. The notice should be inserted above the Notices of
Motions and Orders of the Day. Are we together there Hon. Chibaya? Your Order Number 1 becomes the Public Health Bill and therefore the rest of the numbers will change accordingly.
DISBURSEMENT OF FUNDS TO CDF COMMITTEES
THE HON. SPEAKER: In terms of Article 6 (1) (b) of the CDF Constitution, the Parliamentary Staff Management Committee shall disburse money to constituencies for project implementation. This requirement empowers the CDF Parliamentary Staff Management
Committee to release money for identified projects only. Constituency Development Committees are required to identify projects within their constituencies by conducting consultative processes with all stakeholders in the constituency which must then be approved by the Constituency Development Committee in terms of Article 9 (1) of the CDF constitution.
Constituencies that have submitted their bank account numbers are now required, in terms of Article 6 of the CDF constitution as read together with Section 12 of the Accounting Officer’s Manual, to submit:
- A list of identified projects;
- A minimum of three quotations for each project showing the estimated cost of each project;
- The total estimated cost for all identified projects must not exceed
$50 000;
- Signed minutes of the CDF Committee showing approval of projects.
Those four conditions must be met. Please note, the quotations are required for purposes of calculating the estimated cost of each project and not for approval of projects by the Parliamentary Staff Management
Committee.
Constituencies are therefore urged to comply with the above instructions in order to enable the Parliamentary Staff Management Committee to release money into the Constituency Development Committee bank accounts. To date, only 129 constituencies have submitted the initial documentation and their bank accounts. Out of that figure only two have fully complied with the CDF Constitution and the Accounting Officers’ Manual and have submitted their project list as well as the estimated cost for their identified projects.
The Management Committee has set in motion the process of disbursing their money which is expected in their bank accounts anytime soon. Five submissions did not comply with the provisions of the Constituency Development Fund Constitution and 74 have not made any submission at all.
Hon. Members, you are urged to attend to this matter urgently. This is to your advantage in promoting development in your respective constituencies. This circular, I have asked staff to ensure that this circular is in your pigeon holes. Collect it so that you are guided accordingly.
FIRST READING
PUBLIC HEALTH BILL [H.B. 7, 2017]
THE MINISTER OF HEALTH AND CHILD CARE (HON.
- PARIRENYATWA) presented the Public Health Bill (H.B. 7, 2017).
Bill read the first time.
Bill referred to the Parliamentary Legal Committee.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. MATUKE: I move that Orders of the Day Numbers 1 to 53, on Today’s Order Paper, be stood over until we dispose the rest of the Orders of the Day.
HON. RUNGANI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
CONGRATULATORY MESSAGE ON THE INUAGURATION OF
HIS EXCELLENCY THE PRESIDENT
HON. ZINDI: I move the motion standing in my name:
That this House:
INSPIRED by His Excellency, The President E. D. Mnangagwa’s sterling inaugural address to the nation on Friday 24 November 2017 at the National Sports Stadium, envisaging a new dispensation;
ACKNOWLEDGING the measures already taken such as:
- Efforts to stamp out corruption at all levels as demonstrated by the 90-day moratorium on those who externalised cash and assets, and
- The meetings held with Permanent Secretaries and Public Service Commission highlighting the need to downsize Government structures and appoint a lean Cabinet, and retiring civil servants who have reached their retirement age.
FURTHER ACKNOWLEDGING the need to strengthen
institutions of governance through separation of powers among the three arms of the State namely; the Judiciary, the Legislature and the
Executive;
COGNISANT of the call by His Excellency to shun any forms of retribution and divisions as a way of fostering unity among
Zimbabweans regardless of colour, creed, gender and ethnicity;
MINDFUL of His Excellency, the President’s desire to revive the economy leading to the creation of jobs;
APPLAUDING the sentiments expressed towards restoration of international relations through engaging the international community;
NOW, THEREFORE, expresses its unequivocal and deepest
appreciation and support for the measures being taken to rebuild Zimbabwe.
HON. RTD. BRIG. GEN. KANHANGA: I second.
HON. ZINDI: Thank you Hon. Speaker. Hon. Speaker, I rise to move a congratulatory message to His Excellency the President, Hon.
Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa as the second Executive President of Zimbabwe. I just want to be mindful of the fact that change is a necessity and as it is so, we need to embrace change. We saw in the events that took place in November which then resultantly saw His Excellence E. D. Mnangagwa being installed as President despite the resistance to change, by the former President Robert Mugabe.
It was really an opportune moment for change to take place.
Hence it was embraced by everybody in Zimbabwe and the International
Community. I hope you will allow me to read or to refer to my speech here and there because I do not know the background of His Excellency off hand.
Hon. Speaker, His Excellency, Hon. E.D Mnangagwa, was appointed as the Executive President and 3rd President of the Republic of Zimbabwe and assumed his duty, on Friday, 24th November, 2017; I need to extend also my welcome and also warm congratulations to Amai Auxilia Mnangagwa as the First Lady of Zimbabwe, on the same day.
Mr. Speaker, His Excellency, the President, Hon, Mnangagwa’s appointment as a second Executive President of Zimbabwe, was no surprise to many of us in this House after enduring some humiliating meetings. His Excellency, E.D Mnangagwa demonstrated His political maturity and I am saying his political maturity which he demonstrated particularly after nasty words were hurled at him in his presence but he kept his cool, he never responded; hence, I have to mention this. Those insults were a clear demonstration that he was the heir apparent and it came to pass. All said and done, Hon. Speaker, the man demonstrated his political maturity beyond no doubt in his inauguration speech to shun any forms of retribution and revenge after having been humiliated and insulted publicly. In support of his words, as I have stated above, here is a man who at one time described himself as soft wool; hence his words of non-retribution and also revenge.
Hon. Speaker, I think it is also prudent for me to describe in brief who Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa is. Born on September 15,
1942 in Zvishavane then known as Shabanie and qualified as a lawyer. His Excellency, the President, Cde. Mnangagwa who is and was a close ally worked with the former President of Zimbabwe for over five decades. He is a senior member of the ruling ZANU PF party and served as the first Vice President of Zimbabwe from 2014 until his dismissal in early November 2017, which then prompted him to assume the presidency in November 2017, after the intervention of the
Zimbabwe Defence Forces. He demonstrated his political shrewdness to all and sundry when he took over as the President to the disbelief of those who were opposed to it.
His Excellency the President, Cde. Mnangagwa was a guerilla leader during the Rhodesian bush war. He held a series of senior
Cabinet positions under the former President of Zimbabwe Cde. Robert Mugabe. Nick named ngwena or garwe which describes his political shrewdness. Cde Mnangagwa’s parents were politically active and also farmers. His family fled to Zambia due to political activism against the white settlers in Rhodesia. Cde. Mnangagwa escaped a death sentence over charges of sabotaging a locomotive train in Fort Victoria then known, which is now Masvingo. He was tried under the Law and Order Maintenance Act and served a 10 year imprisonment. His lawyers who defended him during trial, J.J Horn of Scanlen and Holderness pleaded that he was under 21 and could not be executed. He was released and then deported to Zambia to join his parents. While in prison, he became friends with the former President R.G Mugabe and attended his prison classes after which he passed his O levels and A levels.
He trained as a guerrilla fighter in Egypt and China as part of the first group of ZANU leaders sent oversees for training. While in China, Beijing in particular, he attended the Beijing School of Ideology which was run by the Communist Party of China. His Excellency, President Mnangagwa, in Mozambique became a security chief for ZANU and also the assistant and bodyguard to the former President Mugabe. He also accompanied the former President to the negotiations that led to the signing of the Lancaster House Agreement which recognised the
Republic of Zimbabwe. Cde. Mnangagwa became the first country’s
Security Minister and led the Central Intelligence Organisation (CIO) in 1980 when Zimbabwe gained its independence from the British colonial rule. He also took over as the Chairman of the Joint High Command after General Peter Walls was dismissed. Having said that in brief, Hon.
Speaker, I now refer to His Excellency’s inauguration speech.
Measures taken in the new dispensation
Downsizing of Government Structure
Mr. Speaker, in addition to the above, I would like to express
my sincere gratitude to His Excellency’s inspiring inaugural speech on
24th November 2017, in which he set out the tone on a number of reforms and that it was no longer business as usual. His speech envisaged a new dispensation and already some measures have been taken that include an initial meeting with the Permanent Secretaries and Public Service Commission to discuss the need to downsize Government structures, appointment of a lean Cabinet and retiring civil servants who have reached their retirement age; with the ultimate result to cut down on Government expenditure.
90% Government Expenditure is Labour Cost
It is common knowledge that Government expenditure takes up to 90% of the National Budget and His Excellency the President has hit the ground running to curb that expenditure so that Government employs more financial resources into development and service delivery. We welcome the school of thought to retire those who have reached their retirement age so that they open a gap for the young unemployed youths in the civil service. This is inspiring particularly when it is coming from the Head of State, setting the right direction to take as a Government and we are in full support as Parliament.
Lean Cabinet - taking a cue from the Chinese Leadership
Model
Subsequently, a lean Cabinet will definitely reduce the cost that comes with a large Cabinet. On this concept of a lean Cabinet, borrowing from our all-weather friendly nation China, Lawrence and
Martin (2013) states that China’s highest decision making body, the Politburo Standing Committee (PSC) comprises of only seven members with each member having a specific portfolio and it is descriptive of collective leadership and 25 Politburo members in the larger Politburo.
Thus, China has no supreme leader since the death of Deng Xiaoping in
1997 in comparison to our situation where we had more than thirty Cabinet Ministers with a population of only 14 million while China has
1.35 billion.
Lawrence and Martin (2015) further observed that although Xi Jinping is ranked as the first among the seven and has responsibility for convening Politburo Standing Committee and the larger 25 Politburo meetings, also controls the military and foreign affairs, however, Xi must win consensus from the rest of the group for major decisions. Forging agreement can be difficult in part because members of PSC owe their jobs to horse trading among different constituencies, interest groups and influential retired party elders whose interest they represent informally on the PSC. Reaching decisions, though consensus as a tool for leadership reduces conflicts, leading to unity and peace creates a conducive environment for development.
Therefore, with the tone set by His Excellency the President, it would be prudent that he also takes a cue from such leadership style models both as a ruling party and Government. I would like to suggest that we do away with one person holding multiple positions both in the party and Government as was the old order. No to godfathers and godmothers in the political provinces whose behaviour is characteristic of dictatorial and autocratic leadership styles, favouring their own preferred party structure leaders at every level of the party organs while creating factions and causing disharmony in the party.
We call upon our new President to ensure that political bullies have no space in the ruling party and Government. It should be understood that ZANU PF party’s instability has a potential to destabilise the whole society due to its magnitude as we witnessed in the couple of years due to its factional fights which led to the intervention by ZDF in order to stabilise the country and subsequently the army’s intervention led to His Excellency Mnangagwa’s ascendancy to presidency.
There should be a clear distinction between the party and
Government, those appointed as Politburo members should not be Government Ministers as well, as this will ultimately compromise performance as we have experienced time and again with the opposition in the House having to raise the issue of Government Ministers failing to attend Parliament for Wednesday Questions Without Notice Sessions because it is the same day when Politburo members meet. I would advocate for an idea that if one is appointed a Politburo member, the ideal situation should be that such members should be full time working at the party offices with a similar package such as the Government policies which are then implemented by the Government since the party is supreme to Government. China is doing it and South Africa too, for example the Secretary General of ANC, just to mention a few examples.
Meritocracy Guiding Public Officials Appointment
Mindful of His Excellency’s authority to appoint public officials including Ministers, we encourage observation of our Constitution Section 9 (a) which says that appointments to public offices must be made primarily on merit. In the old order, we witnessed public officials being appointed on the basis of nepotism, with the potential to breed corruption in the public institutions and violation of the Constitution. Appointments were done on the basis of how connected one is to the powers that be, regardless of one not having the qualifications for the particular position. Therefore, we applaud our new President for having shown interest to deal with such malfeasances.
Corruption
On the issue of corruption, the President set the tone for zero
tolerance to corruption and has already given a 90 day moratorium on those who externalised cash and assets. As Parliament, we definitely applaud such measures to deal with corruption which has had a negative impact on economic growth.
Public Officials should be Well-Remunerated
As Parliament, we say public officials should be well-remunerated and should declare their wealth. Public officials are servants of the people and should not use politics or public positions that they occupy to accumulate wealth instead of improving the standards of living of the general population. There should not be red tape when public officers sign deals with foreign investors as this will make our country not investor friendly with a negative impact on our economic growth. Our current situation is that most of the public officers are running big businesses such as retail, farming, energy and transport. Thus, there is great temptation that they may use their influence or power to award each other or their close associates lucrative tenders or business licences, thus conflict of interest. Therefore, there should be separation between State offices and business.
Dismissal of Current Board Members and CEOs
Let us talk about the current boards. His Excellency has enunciated in his new dispensation that we should see those boards which are not operating profitably being privatised. That is positive as compared to the era of the past and I am encouraging that it should be done, and also to make sure that those who have been appointed on the boards should not exceed at least two terms, then they should give an opportunity to others.
We have said this over and over, but we never saw it being practiced. I am hopeful His Excellency is going to ensure that this is implemented. E-governance should be installed in all our Government departments. Why am I encouraging that? This is simply because it reduces the interface where people will talk to each other and envelopes exchanging hands. With e-governance, somebody just communicates, gets his information, and pays for whatever fees that one is supposed to pay and whatever levies without that interface where there is a possibility of corruption taking place.
Freedom of expression and association as it is enshrined in our Constitution on Section 59, it is important that people should be in a situation where they can freely air out their grievances to the Government and the Government in the process, should put corrective measures other than having to thwart that freedom of expression as we witnessed in the past. I can go on and give examples.
We have seen war veterans being incarcerated in the past for expressing themselves and we are saying in this new dispensation, freedom of expression as it is enshrined under Section 59, should be allowed. We have seen that in this new dispensation and the positive inauguration speech of His Excellency, we are going to ensure that freedom of expression is going to be practiced.
Let me come to laws which cause unnecessary disharmony in society, for example AIPPA and POSA. These laws are nothing but bring disharmony in society. I am saying for purposes of peace and harmony in society in this new era, we should see such laws which cause unnecessary division among ourselves being repealed.
On the doctrine of separation of powers, it is important and let me quote for example what Shore 2012 states about the doctrine of separation of powers. ‘He says that the principle of separation of powers as the Executive, Legislature and Judiciary ensures that powers of Government are divided into different branches and not concentrated in one. The author further explains that these departments should be separated and distinct because of the corrupting nature of power’.
For example, if the body that makes laws could also enforce them and adjudicate disputes, it would likely do so in preferential manner, undermining the rule of law and basic fairness. Thus, power must be checked or it will be abused, hence my call for the principle of separation of powers to be observed in the new era as opposed to what was happening in the old order.
Hon. Speaker, in this new era I have noticed, seen and heard from
His Excellency who is talking about the growing or growth of the economy, and mining is one area that we should look at. For example on mining, Williams (2011) whom I should quote here cited by Mark Van Bosshore an expert on the foot-printing or the location of diamond sites in Zimbabwe based at the world diamond centre in Belgium says,
“Zimbabwe has the largest diamond deposits worldwide and they are a
billion years old”.
The kimberlite diamonds do stretch over 70 km from Chiadzwa district of Marange to the Chimanimani Mountains on the Mozambican border. Our diamonds are said to be worth up to US$800 billion. Further, William 2011) says, as he is cited by Belfast Telegraph, estimated that the fields could meet a quarter of the world’s demand for diamonds with potential revenue estimated at US$1 billion to US$1.7 billion per year, which is about half the crisis ridden country’s total GDP. This was said by 2010, and enough to end our economic wars almost at a stroke as it is reported by economists from U.K., cited by
William (2011).
I am saying as we are talking about economic growth, we should look at how best we can utilise...
Hon. J. Tshuma having passed between the Chair and the Hon.
Member speaking.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, Hon. Tshuma, you may not cross between the Speaker and the Hon. Member speaking.
HON. ZINDI: Thank you Hon. Speaker. I was saying as we are talking about growing our economy, the diamonds, this much, this worth, we should ensure in the new era that they benefit the country, citizens and everyone because we have them. On the platinum group metals, I understand there are six metals which are found in platinum. These are ruthenium, rhodium, palladium, osmium, iridium and platinum itself. These are the six which are found in platinum. They have similar physical and chemical properties and tend to occur together in the same mineral deposits.
According to Azonet Network (2017), it says, RioZim reported 8
600 metric tonnes of copper and nickel in 2010. Zimplats Holdings Pvt.
Limited of Gansey, Ngezi Mine accounted for 3.9 milion metric tonnes of ore in 2010. The ore included the following: 2500 tonnes of copper, 340 tonnes of nickel, 4.6 tonnes of palladium, 5.6 tonnes of platinum,
600 kgs gold and 500 kgs of rhodium. Mimosa Mine owned by the Mimosa Investments Limited of Mauritius, accounted for 2.3 million metric tonnes (mt) of ore in 2010. The ore included 2 792t of nickel, 2 396t of copper, 79t of cobalt, 3.2t of platinum, 2.4t of palladium, 430kg of gold and 250kg of rhodium. Thus, experts feel that in the future, the Government needs to realise that mining investment is crucial to economic recovery as this industry accounts for nearly 65% of exports and more than half of the country’s foreign exchange revenue here in Zimbabwe.
Thus, there is need for the Government to put in place measures to ensure the Government is not fleeced……
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, can you please refer to the notes rather than reading the speech?
HON. ZINDI: Thank you Hon. Speaker. Some of the notes I have to read because I do not know them by head, this is why I was making reference to the details. Nonetheless, I will.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, do not contest the Chair. I
allowed you the mathematical side because it is only fair that you refer - but when it comes to the narrative, please.
HON. ZINDI: By your indulgence I will observe that Hon.
Speaker. Thank you. I have given all these statistics on the principle of growing our economy Hon. Speaker, that Zimbabwe has got the potential. It has got the potential, particularly when we are looking at our minerals, the gold and everything that I have made reference to but the worrying factor is that all this platinum the ore is being processed outside and we are actually being informed of whatever that has been gotten from that ore.
In this new era we need to put measures to make sure that smelters have been constructed in this country and this ore is processed locally. There is need for the Government to put in place measures that ensure the Government is not fleeced of its minerals by investors through putting in place policies that encourage payment of what is due to Government without prejudice to the fiscus.
With these words and with this contribution as my congratulatory message, on the installation of His Excellency, Emmerson, Dambudzo Mnangagwa, we are so hopeful that the economy is going to grow. We are so hopeful that we are in a new dispensation and that he is going to drive. He is going to be the captain of the ship and we are going to be sailing smoothly. I thank you
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. Yesterday, after leaving the Chair, a number of Hon. Members started trickling out and in the end we did not have a quorum. Now, if you consider what items are on the Order Paper, there are so many of them. You are expected to be here at least up to 7 o’clock. When you do a bunk of the session, you are not indicating your seriousness to the cause of Parliamentary debate and presence. So, I am appealing to Hon. Members that as much as
possible, try to debate the items so that we reduce those items on the Order Paper, by your presence.
Vehicle registration AEF 2364 has blocked other vehicles in the parking bay. The responsible Hon. Member please adjust your parking accordingly.
HON. RTD. BRIG. GEN. KANHANGA: Thank you Mr.
Speaker Sir. Allow me to start by congratulating His Excellency, Cde E.
- Mnangagwa on his ascension to the high office and also to thank Hon. Zindi for moving this important motion.
As I rise Mr. Speaker, I do so in the belief that the country has crossed the Rubicon and that there will be no going back after the departure of the former President. The journey that we have travelled; the terrain and terrain features we have traversed as a nation has been rough. It has had its pains and hardship but at the same time it has also brought its joys and a new hope for the future.
The leadership qualities of His Excellency, the President have been amply exuded in his Inaugural Speech and Keynote Address at the Special National Congress and the State of the Nation Address (SONA), which set the tone and trajectory of his desires. All I would like to share with the House are things, hopes and dreams which we as Members of Parliament and as representatives of people at large pray for during the incumbency of His Excellency, the President.
The President, as we know him is a sort of man; he is a sort of person who will not waste another day, week or month in coming to grips with issues on the national agenda and among those will be the whole question of providing inspiration in leadership in order to bring new hope to the young who are without jobs. These jobs can be created by expediting the establishment of the National Productivity Institute, which will serve to promote the competitiveness of the local industry.
As we speak, he has laid out various initiatives towards economic recovery which include combating of corruption and here I want to emphasise his determination when he made mention of no sacred cows and if I may quote him, he said, “I mean it.” He has also highlighted the issue of promoting good governance, revamping or disposing of nonperforming parastatals. He has mentioned robust reengagement with the international community to include the removal of sanctions and engagement with the international finance institutions like the Bretton Woods institutions. He also talked about revamping the health delivery system.
Madam Speaker, I want to refer to Parirenyatwa Hospital. During the days when it was set up, it was called Andrew Fleming; it used to be a regional and international referral centre. However, all of a sudden, that has gone to zero, not because there is any change at Parirenyatwa, the equipment is still there, the expertise is still there but what is only needed is just a few resources to quick start, re-kit or retool and then we are back in business. It is one area which I think can be addressed very quickly as a low-hanging fruit.
He also mentioned of the infrastructure renewal, that is retooling and re-kitting of industry. I think we can carry out an audit to look at the various levels of our dysfunctional industries, they are not all the same. Some just require maybe one cog in a wheel, which will cost maybe $1000 but we are taking it and classifying all of them as – to quote my friend here, “moribund,” they are old and cannot be rehabilitated. We should look at those which can be revived quickly and put in resources so that the industry is revived.
He also made mention of a commitment by this nation to holding a credible, free and fair election. Here we are saying; leveling the playing field so that everyone is at par and we look forward to that. The President has moved a step further in setting up a platform where all parties are coming together trying to find one another and sort out differences, in BVR, national registration or any other issue that other parties feel are not fair before the holding of elections. In that regard, we think it is a positive step and we hope to see free and fair elections.
The President also mentioned the ease of doing business, the OneStop Shop we have all been talking about, I think for years now, I do not know but maybe three to four years. Legislation has been changing, today, tomorrow and so on, we have not come to any meaningful One-
Stop Shop. I think this issue needs urgent attention.
As a first step towards achieving all these other areas that I have alluded to, he has directed Government Ministries to operate on a clear set of targets to be implemented within 100 days and I am sure some of the ministers are sweating under their collars to meet the 100 day moratorium. Equally, we think that this should not only be restricted to ministries, it must be spread across the board. It is no longer business as usual, we want to make sure that we complement the efforts of His Excellency in trying to make sure that we show that we want to quickly realise the aspirations of the people within the shortest possible time.
The President has also gone further to implore public officials to use resources efficiently. Some time back, a Permanent Secretary could have three to four vehicles, all allocated to him and a Minister; four to five vehicles allocated to him, including one for ferrying his children to school. That has to stop and we have to make sure that we have efficient use of our resources.
On the issue of land, Madam Speaker, I have a few recommendations which I want to put to the House;
- Allocation of land should be to passionate farmers, we cannot all be farmers and that is a fact of life. Let us reorganize where we see that Hon. Kanhanga had just taken up land for speculative purposes, let us reduce that piece of land to a minimum size to allow him to just feed his family and give the chunk of land to people who are productive.
- I am recommending that farms that have been lying idle for five years and above should be repossessed by the State and redistributed, because Zimbabwe is running hungry - not because there is no land, but because the people who were allocated land are not fully utilising the land – [AN HON. MEMBER: Especially
G40.] –
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Member.
HON. RTD. BRIG. GEN. KANHANGA: I think it is only prudent that to achieve that; the Land Commission be resourced enough to be able to carry out a comprehensive audit and make sure that we name and shame these people who are sitting on land with their offer letters, pretending to be farmers when they are just people using those farms as holiday homes. I also recommend that in the process of land allocation, there was a lot of corruption within the District Lands Committees. I recommend that investigations be carried out on these corrupt District Lands Officers who have enriched themselves at the expense of the nation. Surely, we must bring sanity to this sector.
On exporters, I just want to make a recommendation. Exporters bring in foreign currency, we need to support them so that they can retool and re-kit but what is happening is that; if you are a tobacco farmer who earns about $2 million and want to buy a diesel pump to augment your irrigation facility, when you approach the Reserve Bank searching for foreign currency, there is none. I am therefore proposing that, to incentivise farmers, why not give the exporters, 30% of their earnings in hard currency and leave 70% to the Government so that the farmers or whoever the exporters are can retool and re-kit.
On Command Agriculture, just a recommendation, it is a very noble programme but I recommend that instead of Government running Command Agriculture. Why not let it be run by the banks who have mechanisms for recovering in terms of default if one defaults because Government does not have any mechanisms for recovering. Apart from
that, it is a noble idea.
To conclude Madam Speaker, I believe that this nation should consider itself very lucky in that we continue to have stability in Government which is very rare in this troubled world. Compliments must go to our Defence Forces. Sure the vagaries of climate change and weather will continue to worry this nation but one thing that we have not had a drought of is leadership and that is worth more than gold. I thank you Madam Speaker.
HON. MARIDADI: Thank you Madam Speaker. I wish to thank the mover of the motion and the seconder, Hon. Rtd. Brig. Kanhanga. Madam Speaker, I rise here to debate this motion. I have gone through it very carefully and there are a number of issues that I want to raise. I think congratulations to His Excellency are in order for assuming the position of President of this Republic. Madam Speaker, if you look at this motion here, the first point is that; Acknowledging the Preamble of the Constitution of Zimbabwe which among other endeavours is to commit ourselves to build a united, just, prosperous nation founded on the values of transparency, equality, freedom, fairness and dignity of hard work.
We, as Zimbabweans must be dignified and we must be honest people. Those values are sacrosanct. If we look at events leading to the ascendancy of Hon. Mnangagwa, they make a very sad reading, if we are going to put it in a book. Madam Speaker, it was in this House that I rose to debate a motion on some issue. As I was debating that motion, I raised the point that it was not right for a sitting President to go to a public forum and insult his deputy. There was a chorus of disapproval from your right Madam Speaker. The Vice President I was talking about is none other than Hon. Dambudzo Mnangagwa, now the President. Actually, one of the Members of Parliament sitting to your right raised a point of order that I was no longer debating a motion but I was debating the President; yet they are the same people today who are falling over each other, congratulating Hon. Dambudzo Mnangagwa; the same person they were insulting two weeks earlier.
Madam Speaker, it was in this House, on this microphone, that I
stood up to debate when Hon. Dambudzo Mnangagwa, as Vice President had been insulted at ZANU PF Headquarters. There was a chorus of disapproval from your right. They are the same people today who are standing up to say, he is a man of vision, where did the vision suddenly come from – [Laughter.] – [AN. HON. MEMBER: Vave natenzi wechipiri.] – Zimbabweans must not be...
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order. Can we hear the Hon.
Member please?
HON. MARIDADI: Zimbabweans must not be hypocrites. The Holly Bible, even Jesus Christ said, people that he detested during his time were hypocrites and he called them stiff-necked people of callused feet, vanhu vane man’a nemitsipa yakaomarara. People must not be hypocrites. I have realised that in Zimbabwe, there are people that do not follow principles but they follow people. If Madam Speaker, by some stroke of I do not know what miracle, if President Mugabe were to come back today as President, the same people fall over each other congratulating him – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – Madam
Speaker, it was in this House, on this microphone, using the same leave that I am using today when I spoke about the former First Lady, Mai Grace Mugabe. I was saying, ko vanofambireiko vachituka vanhu? People on your right disapproved. Points of orders were raised from all over the place. Mapoints of order akanyuka kuita kunge howa. Point of order that side, point of order that side.
Madam Speaker, people must tell the truth. What I know is that I was invited to a function three four days before Hon. Mnangagwa was dismissed as Vice President of this country. Most Members of Parliament sitting in this House were also invited. I was invited by a special invitation card because the owner of the company, I am friends with him. When I went to that function, despite the fact that more than 50 Members of Parliament of this House had been invited, there were only two Members of Parliament and I was only one of them from the Opposition. I stood there and looked around, there was not a single Minister to support the Vice President. There was not a single Member of Parliament. The only Member of Parliament who was there was Hon.
Owen Ncube, I am going to mention him by name. Only Hon. Owen Ncube was the Member of Parliament there.
As I was walking out, I said to one of them, aaah, ko vanhu hamusi kuzo supporter Vice President sei? Zvikanzi aaah, tovasuporterei? Vane chiikowo ivava? – [HON. MEMBERS: Ndiani akadaro?] – Take it easy. I am debating, take it easy, I am coming there, take it easy.
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Member. Can
we have order? I think if you did not say anything, why do you worry.
Can you leave the Hon. Member to debate?
HON. MARIDADI: Madam Speaker, three days later, the then Vice President, Hon. Dambudzo Mnangagwa was sitting in some House
...
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon. Mliswa please!
HON. MARIDADI: Hon. Dambudzo Mnangagwa was sitting in some House, as Vice President and he had just been dismissed and there were only five people in that room. His wife was one of them. His phone did not ring for about three to four hours. When Hon. Mnangagwa jumped the border to go to South Africa and things happened in this nation and it was a day before he came here, I am told his phone was ringing off the hook. He switched off his phone but it continued to ring because people were continuing to phone – [Laughter.] – When he came back to Zimbabwe as President and his wife came and sat there, people were almost climbing on her to say, congratulations. She was almost suffocated but it is the same Auxillia Mnangagwa whose husband was dismissed in public and people laughed at her. Barely three days later, people were falling over each other congratulating her. Isisu taitaura navo, we could not even talk to her. Up to now, I have not even spoken to her because you cannot even go through because people are busy phoning from your right.
Madam Speaker, let me tell you and this is a warning to the President, His Excellency, those people who are going to his office and those people that are sending congratulatory messages, those are wolves in sheep’s skin. They do not like him, they like his power – HON. MEMBERS: Yes. Wabata pane mari.] – Madam Speaker, I am one person who did not like the Presidency of the former President Cde. Gabriel Mugabe. That is why I tried to move a motion to impeach him from 2013. I tried from 2013, until I had to go to the Constitutional Court. Madam Speaker, today I would never rise to say anything disparaging of Cde. Mugabe. Handife ndakavatuka in his personal capacity, but a Member of Parliament from the right once stood up and said Mrs. Mugabe is a prostitute. It is there, it is in the public domain.
If you want I can copy it. It is there in the public domain. Hon. Chinotimba in an interview said Mrs. Mugabe is a prostitute and we told him that you do not say such things about someone’s wife.
Let me tell you, if you are a senior in ZANU PF today and you are a Minister and you hear people say that, they could say the same thing to your wife tomorrow. They will say exactly the same thing to Hon. Auxillia Mnangagwa, they will say exactly the same thing to the wife of the Speaker because these are people without principles. What they follow is power, they do not follow ideals.
Madam Speaker, we must not be a nation of hypocrites. If things had not gone the way they went, I am telling you Madam Speaker, you would not be sitting in that Chair. I am telling you Hon. Kashiri you would not be a Minister. Hon. Kashiri, you would be living in
Mozambique in exile and Madam Speaker, you would be living in Mutoko in exile. Madam Speaker, congratulating Hon. Mnangagwa has no value. It does not add value to anything. It does not add value to him; it does not add value to this nation. What we must focus on is work. We are an institution of the State and what we must do is to hold the President to account. We must be saying to ourselves, President Mnangagwa, these are the things you promised us, how far have you gone and what are you doing about these things instead of saying makorokoto, makorokoto. Ekuita sei makorokoto?
Madam Speaker, today we were told there are hoards and hoards of t-shirts printed R. G. Mugabe with a signature. Now they do not even know what to do with those t-shirts. It is because people are hypocrites. I am challenging ZANU PF today to give me those t-shirts so that I can give them to the less privileged people of Mabvuku and Tafara. I am challenging you because you do not want them. Give them to me. Madam Speaker, just two weeks before Hon. Mnangagwa became
President here, this car park was full of cars which had the signature of
President Mugabe and the face of Grace Mugabe with the words ‘Munhu wese kuna amai’. We have videos here of people three days after Hon.
Mnangagwa was fired saying ‘Munhu wese kuna amai’, but they are the same people who almost climbed on the President when he came here.
Literally climbed on him. What nonsense is that?
At least what I like about Cde. Mugabe is that when he came here, people did not try to climb on him to say congratulations. Why are they doing it to Cde. E. D. Mnangagwa? They will remove him from focusing. What Hon. Mnangagwa needs now is support and the support is not to go in front of him and say, we are supporting you. No, you support from the background. You support by action by what you are doing. What you must tell the President is that he is the President of ZANU PF and he is also President of the nation, so he is also President of MDC-T people.
Madam Speaker, just last week, I was told rice is available for Members of Parliament at the Ministry. I go to the Ministry and I am told no, it is no longer available for urban MPs, but Hon. Makari got hers, Hon. Mazivisa got his but now it is not available because it is Maridadi who supports the MDC-T. Is MDC-T a party from
Mozambique? Those are the things Hon. Kashiri you must be telling
President Mnangagwa, that he should depart from Cde Robert Mugabe’s legacy. Go on a new trajectory. This is the new trajectory where I must be able to come into your office as an opposition person and say
Honourable, I want this and this and you must be able to grant them.
That is what we want, but we have young Ministers who think like 90 year olds. They think like people born in 1922 and yet they are young, they are in their 40s and in their 50s. What nonsense is that?
Madam Speaker, what we want now – I am also going to give recommendations to the President. The President of this country, Hon. E. D. Mnangagwa must never receive presents from people. Not birthday presents, not even a birthday card. He must not because when you do that, you compromise him. Former President Mugabe’s cake which was the size of this table would come from Premier Medical Aid
Society. Just see how difficult it was for us to deal with the issue of
Premier Medical Aid Society because the President was compromised.
I wish Hon. Auxillia Mnangagwa was here and I would say to her, if you see people from ZANU PF coming to your house, tell them to go away. If they want to see the President, they must go to ZANU PF Head Quarters and make an appointment. Why do they want to go to his house, say what? That is when they tell him Hon. Nduna said this and that and Hon. Maridadi said this, trivial things – [Laughter.]-
Madam Speaker, we want to build this country. This country belongs to all of us, whether you are ZANU PF. Whether you are from Chimuti party or from the MDC-T, at the end of the day, the country comes first and the party comes second. So, this idea of thinking that if you belong to this party you are more patriotic than people who belong to this party is wrong. Also let me give another recommendation to the President. President Mnangagwa must not allow people to go around wearing t-shirts printed ‘E. D. Kutonga Kwaro’. I will tell you what that means. I saw a group of young boys who were driving a Mercedes Benz with a picture of the President. When they get to a road block police do not stop them, their vehicles are not searched. They are not subjected to what other citizens are subjected to because they say can you not see that I am driving a vehicle with the picture of the President.
The same people used to do that in the previous dispensation. They would drive around. In Mabvuku and Tafara what they would do is they would get a piece of land and Hon. Kashiri here knows it, they would come to an area, find an empty space, take a flag which is written ‘Munhu wese kuna amai’ put it there and the rest is history. Police cannot even come there and cooperatives are given names such as R. G. Mugabe, Grace Lands, Amai Mugabe Cooperative, ZIM ASSET and what have you.
Madam Speaker, I am going to repeat myself for the purposes of Hansard. A Member of Parliament from this House, Hon. Chinotimba, in an interview said Grace Mugabe is a prostitute. Madam Speaker, that must never be repeated – [Laughter.] -
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order. Hon. Chinotimba,
could you please take your seat. Hon. Maridadi, I think you should refrain from repeating yourself.
HON. MARIDADI: I was doing it because he is here.
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: No, I do not allow you. Just continue with your debate. Also mind you…
HON. MARIDADI: Okay the light is on, that is fine but I have dealt with them.
HON. CHINOTIMBA: On a point of order, Madam Speaker.
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: What is your point of order
Hon. Chinotimba? Hon. Maridadi, could you please take your seat.
*HON. MARIDADI: That is what they would also do when former President Mugabe was there.
*HON. CHINOTIMBA: Madam Speaker, you have warned Hon.
Maridadi that he is repeating himself. My point of order, is I once had a discussion with Hon. Maridadi and informed him that this august House it is not a place where you have to snatch other people’s wives and he is repeating that. He always wants to snatch other people’s wives because he is a radio personality – [Laughter.]-
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order, order. Can we have
order please? Order! Hon. Maridadi, would you please wind up.
HON. MARIDADI: Thank you. This is a very good House,
Madam Speaker, because even those that have nothing to say are also given a platform to just show their ignorance and to share their ignorance. It is okay.
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Maridadi, this is where you go wrong.
HON. MARIDADI: I am sorry Madam Speaker...
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: I said please proceed and
wind up, just concentrate on your debate.
HON. MARIDADI: In conclusion Madam Speaker...
HON. HOLDER: On a point of order Madam Speaker.
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: What is your point of order?
HON. HOLDER: Madam Speaker, my point of order is that, can you add another 5 minutes to Hon. Maridadi, I am enjoying this - [HON.
MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] –
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: I did not hear what the Hon.
Member said - [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – Let us have order please, there is no need for making such noise. Hon. Maridadi - [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – Is there an objection?
HON. CHINOTIMBA: I object.
HON. MARIDADI: In conclusion, Madam Speaker - [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – Madam Speaker, I want to be heard in silence.
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: If there is an objection, you cannot proceed Hon. Member.
HON. MARIDADI: Madam Speaker, the issues have been raised; I thank you so much for your time.
HON. CHASI: Thank you Madam Speaker - [HON. MEMBERS:
Inaudible interjections.] –
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: My appeal Hon. Members -
[HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – Order, Hon. Members, can we have order in the House. I am appealing to you, I know Hon.
Chasi has a very small voice, so I want to hear what he is saying.
HON. CHASI: Thank you very much Madam Speaker. I believe
that congratulations to His Excellency the President are in order and I say so for a number of reasons. The first one being that we are all familiar with the humiliation that he was subject to. I am personally familiar with that humiliation - [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order Hon. Members, do you
not you want to hear what your colleague is saying. Now you are busy having meetings, I do not want to mention names.
HON. CHASI: I was making the point that congratulations contrary to what Hon. Maridadi has said are very much in order to the President for the obvious reasons that we are all familiar with the humiliation that he was subjected to. Not many of us have experienced that type of humiliation in this House and in this country, it has never happened. It was the first time for a sitting Vice President sitting next to his wife to be insulted left, right and centre by the former First Lady of the country in his presence, yet at no time did he reflect any emotion nor did he retaliate to the very harsh words including at one point where he was repeatedly referred to as somebody who is mad. The former First
Lady repeatedly said ‘unopenga, unopenga’ and so I think that, to have survived that type of abuse and become the President of the country deserves congratulations from all of us.
I also want to say it is common knowledge that the President miraculously survived. He is now here, he is the President of this country and congratulations are in order. So, I want to correct the Hon. Member with regards to those sentiments. There are reasons also why we must congratulate him; the quality of loyalty that he exhibited to the former President for such a long period and then to be humiliated and not only that, to be expelled from a party that he had served loyally for a very long time. We all know that he held so many portfolios in Government since independence; Minister of State for Security, Minister of Defence, Minister of Finance, Minister of Justice and Minister of Rural Housing. There is not one individual in this country who can claim to have had similar extent of experience in Government. So, I think I want to say that he is very experienced and he is an appropriate person to be in Government as Head of State at the moment. The qualities that he has exhibited require that we all emulate him. Part of our problems in this country is that we are not patient; we are quick to retaliate if our politicians would like to get at somebody as quickly as possible and destroy them.
What we have seen in the President is, since the troubles that resulted in the action that was taken by the armed forces on the 15th of November, 2017 arose from a lack of principle as Hon. Maridadi has mentioned, and a failure to comply with rules and the law; I want to say that political actors like me and Hon. Members within our respective parties, we must respect the principles that are contained in the Constitution. In so far as we talk about the pre-eminence of the law, we must respect our own Constitution within our own political formations, respect the national Constitution and also respect the Judiciary and its decisions. When those decisions are made, they are binding on everyone and they must be complied with. I want to illustrate the fact that our respect for the rule of law was amply demonstrated when people in Manzou won a court order barring the former First Lady from occupying and the State from removing those people. That court order was never complied with - the police refused to ensure compliance. So, when blame is cast on the former First Lady, we must also know -
[HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order in the House.
HON. CHASI: We must also know that there were very senior officials in the Government who were complicit in all these things that were happening. When I was abused at an orphanage, it was because individuals were going to the First Lady saying completely wrong things which are completely uncharacteristic of me. When land was being distributed in Mazowe, there were people who were encouraging her to carry out those acquisitions and to evict people during the midst of the night when it was raining, when they had not harvested whatever it is that they had planted and to go dump them in the middle of nowhere with reckless regard to the health of the minor children that were there, to the possibility of those children getting education. Their lives were completely disrupted and so, blame must be found and those individuals who aided and abated those illegalities must be accountable without reference to their political affiliation but simply looking at what it is that they have done. The President has exhibited extreme humility. The former Vice President has not been abused. In fact, we all know that he has been given a fairly lucrative package. The former First Lady is still in Zimbabwe. She has not been the subject of any abuse which one would term illegal or unlawful. Those are characteristics that we really need to follow.
I would like to pick up on a point that Hon. Maridadi made reference to, the issue of hypocrisy and dishonesty. Both aspects are the fulcrums of corruption which is an evil that the President has declared war against. In order for us to deal with corruption, we must operate on the basis of principles as I think the war veterans in this country have done consistently since the war and up to now. The criticisms about militarisation in my view are misplaced. In 1980, some war veterans went to the army, private sector and Government departments. But for political gain or out of ignorance, others would like to pretend that this is something that is happening now. We have people like the two Vice Presidents and the Minister of Agriculture, Hon. Shiri - they are accomplished military people and decorated combatants for this country. What is it that is wrong for somebody who has served their country for over forty years to want to go into politics? I do not think that there is any problem. The combatants have simply moved along a continuum of the liberation ideology to be able to participate in the policy making of the country.
I would like to suggest as I have said, that transparency is key in governmental operations. Unless we deal with that, we will not be able to deal with corruption. The opacity of the operations of Government create a very fertile environment for corrupt activity. One of the hall marks of corruption or of corrupt individuals is arrogance. Civil servants who are arrogant to the public are motivated by desire to instill fear into people so that their decisions are not questioned and that their management style which is corrupt is not mentioned.
As a country, we must ensure that there is adequate information. If people are not given adequate information, it breeds mistrust.
Government must simply cleanse itself of perception, real or imagined in some circumstances of corruption by ensuring that there is an overdose of information to the public. People must know what is happening. There must be no unnecessary or unlawful hiding of information that concerns the public. It must be given freely all the time.
We now refer to the new era – there must be a break with the past. I think the President has made that point very well. There is also reference to the new economic order but I want to suggest with particular reference to Parliament, that we also require a new legal order which brings into sharp relief the function of this House; the need for proactivity in ensuring that we deal with the very pith matter of alignment of our legislation to the Constitution. The public in my view, is entitled to feel unhappy at the pace at which the process has gone. I think this House must cease itself with that responsibility to ensure that all our laws are in line with what the Constitution says. Where the Constitution is inadequate or unacceptable in some respect - we must agree as a nation that there must be an amendment to those portions.
I will turn to another point that was raised by previous speakers; the need for continuous engagement within the country. We must be able to….
Cellphone rings.
HON. CHASI: I am very sorry Madam Speaker. Please forgive me.
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: Honestly, you need to be sorry because that cellphone is not supposed to be on – [HON. ADV. CHAMISA: Inaudible interjection.] - Hon. Chamisa, you have to respect the House.
*HON. ADV. CHAMISA: It is true, that is why I am saying that the cellphone should be off.
HON. CHASI: Madam Speaker, I was making reference to the need for a new legal order. Constitutionalism does not only start at the national level. In our political formations, we must be passionate about our respective constitutions. Part of the problems that ensued with respect to my own party, I must confess – was the imbecile…. – [AN
HON. MEMBER: May he speak up, we cannot hear him.] –
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: There is a request that you
raise your voice a bit because people are struggling to hear what you are saying.
HON. CHASI: I am very sorry. I am normally a man of few words.
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: I know that.
HON. CHASI: I am a man of few words and of a low voice. I will try and shout as much as I can. I wish I had the voice of Hon. Shiri that bellows out even outside this court but unfortunately, I am not.
I am saying that Parliament must be ceased with the law making process. It is not adequate to blame the Executive for the failure to align our laws to the Constitution. I do not believe that there is any legal hindrance to Parliament taking over certain aspects or all aspects of alignment. I also do not believe that there is any prohibition against members in this House coming up with private Bills. They are permissible. As a country, we need to come up with a timeframe within which this process must be completed. It cannot go on ad infinitum. The engagement intra-party, I think the President has done well. He has shown that he is bona fide. He is a good President. His visit to ‘his adversary’ recently shows that he is a human President. I want to encourage that such engagement must still continue to happen as a matter of course. Otherwise as a country, we cannot continue to live as a pariah state in the world. We need to be a very active member of the nations in the world respecting international law and respecting our own laws locally.
I have already dealt with corruption in the public sector but let us not fool ourselves to believing that corruption only exist in Government.
We know that it does exist in the private sector and we know that ….
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: May I remind you that you
are left with a few minutes.
HON. CHASI: Thank you Madam Speaker, I am winding up. We know that corruption exists in the generality of the public and sometimes as a result of inefficiencies that exist in Government. We need to deal ruthlessly with corruption. When people are arrested, it must be on the basis of facts. They must be quickly prosecuted and the sentences must reflect the seriousness of the problem that we are facing as a country.
I want to agree with Hon. Kanhanga with respect to all of his recommendations. I think we need to follow them through.
I want to conclude by thanking the veterans of the struggle for Zimbabwe who have come into play to ensure that the vision that the liberation struggle envisioned continues – which is to deliver service to the people of Zimbabwe. I also want to make special mention of our Defence Forces who valiantly defended the Constitution. There was no blood that was lost and if there were instances where errant individuals within the forces did things that were untoward, it was clearly not the policy of the army. I thank you.
HON. DR. MUKANDURI: Thank you Madam Speaker. I want to
contribute on this motion which was introduced by Hon. Zindi and seconded by Hon. Rtd Gen. Kanhanga. First of all, I would like to congratulate His Excellency the President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, Cde E.D Mnangagwa for his ascension to the higher office on this land. Here is a man who survived being hanged during the 1960s when he was sentenced to death. Some of his colleagues were sentenced to death but he narrowly escaped death because it was noted that he was still under age but of course, God had a purpose for this man.
Late last year in August, here is a man who was poisoned at a function and on a Friday, only became conscious that he was in South Africa. Lucky enough, he survived because God had a purpose for this man. Now, he is the man leading this country and leading those people who tried to kill him. Let me be very frank, His Excellency the President of Zimbabwe is one of the few loyal cadres who were very loyal to the party and the former President – [AN. HON. MEMBER: Inaudible interjections.] – Give me a chance. I need your protection Madam Speaker.
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order! Can we have order?
HON. DR. MKANDURI: This is a man who has compassion. He
is a compassionate person. A week ago, His Excellency visited the leader of the opposition party Mr. Tsvangirai because we all know that he is not feeling well and the President and his Deputy took time out of their busy schedule and visited Mr. Tsvangirai. Mr. Tsvangirai was very grateful because I saw in the newspaper that he really appreciated and said this is a compassionate person – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.].
On corruption, I think we have noted that during his inaugural speech on the 24th November, he said he is somebody who is against corruption and there would be no sacred cows, instead masamba asiyana. We should all be accountable to the people of Zimbabwe. We are legislators here but we are servants of the people. People in positions in the private sector and Government structures should all realise that we are servants of the people and should desist from corrupt activities.
Corruption is a societal evil that will destroy the entire nation.
I do not want to repeat what has been by my colleagues but let me say to date, there are some people who have said, ah he came into power on the 24th November what has he done. You know, if we are very honest people we had problems on our roads. The police force had gone out of control and were really looting – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – until the Defence Forces saved us and were also prepared to serve, and save the people. They are our saviours, not us here but they are the saviours of the people of Zimbabwe. The people out there were afraid. If it is lady driving a car, she would be stopped and they would take turns to say you must pay $20. It was daylight robbery and we had a functioning Government that was not taking any action until the Defence Forces said we have to save and also serve the nation. Those are two roles.
The current President, Cde E.D. Mnangagwa has promised us as a nation and even the international world that come 2018, we are going to have free, fair and credible elections. Let me say to my colleagues here, the problem in Africa or all over the world is that some people have prepared templates. As long as they are beaten on the Election Day, elections are not free and fair. They already have a prepared template but not here in Zimbabwe. I am not saying here in Zimbabwe but in other parts of the world people want to participate in elections where they win – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – No, an election is where you fight, not physically but it is a political fight. When you lose or win an election you must accept.
All what I am saying is that the people of Zimbabwe are our judges. The decision of the people of Zimbabwe is final. They do not like me because I am Samson Mukanduri, no - they are not fools. I just want to comment on an issue that happened soon after the inauguration of the President of Zimbabwe. We heard there are a few guys;
Welshman Ncube and Tendai Biti who flew to Washington. What for? Where did they get the money? The story is that some of these people –
[AN. HON. MEMBER: How much is a plane ticket? $800.] – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – Give me time.
The American Government has a mission here. They have their
Ambassador stationed here. If we have problems we can just go to the
American Ambassador and say we want to meet you. There is this A, B, C and D, do not waste foreign currency to go and try to crucify your nation. These sanctions are real and are caused by us here in Zimbabwe. we should not sell our nation and people but we should serve our people – [HON. DR. LABODE: Watanga.] – Thank you Hon. Labode, give me
time.
I now come to the issue of national resources. Zimbabwe is endowed with –
HON. TOFFA: On a point of order Madam Speaker. I am sure when we are debating in Parliament we need to be very factual. The
Hon. Member, Hon. Dr. Mukanduri says Prof. W. Ncube flew to America. It is not true. He did not go. Thank you.
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: I think that is true that he did not go to America. If you want to mention names, mention those who went to America. If he did not go, say the facts. I think you are right Hon. Member.
HON. DR. MUKANDURI: Thank you Madam Speaker. I want to say that we were misled by our media because they were saying three leaders from the opposition, one of them…
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon. Mukanduri, I do not
think that we deal with what comes out in the press but let us say the facts here.
HON. DR. MUKANDURI: Thank you very much. Let me now
come to the issue of natural resources. Madam Speakers, Zimbabwe is a very rich country. We are endowed with natural resources and in fact on the continent, I think that Zimbabwe is the richest country. We have platinum, gold, lithium and nickel, yet we are one of the poorest countries because we are failing to manage our own resources. So, the current President has appealed to us as a nation when he said that we want to harness our own resources for the benefit of our own people and of our own country.
*HON. MUTSEYAMI: On a point of order. Thank you Madam Speaker and good afternoon Madam Speaker. This was a good motion and if they were part of G40, they should exonerate themselves on their own. I think that they should find other means of exonerating themselves slowly and slowly.
*THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: Hon. Mutseyami, you are
out of order. Hon. Mukanduri, you can proceed.
HON. DR. MUKANDURI: Madam Speaker, thank you for your
protection. I am saying Zimbabwe is a rich country which is endowed with a lot of natural resources – precious metals. I mentioned that we have platinum and in terms of platinum, I think that Zimbabwe is the richest country with the largest quantity of platinum on the continent and if not in the world. We should try by all means to add value to our natural resources. On platinum, I understand that a year or two ago, we had some Russians who said that they were going to invest and perhaps bring in a smelter. We should encourage these people so that we add value to our natural resources.
We have palladium – the reason I said we should have smelters is that platinum as a mineral has a lot of by-products but we export it in raw form and ignore the fact that there are a number of by-products.
So on the issue of land; I would not want to add to what has been said by the Hon. General Kanhanga and Hon. Chasi. We should not be lazy people. If you are given a piece of land, to those beneficiaries of the Land Reform Programme, please let us utilise the land, because we have people who sacrificed their lives and fought for the independence of this country. They died, perished and shed their blood because they wanted Zimbabwe to be independent and to be free from the colonial yoke or bondage. So, I am not mincing my words – those who benefited from the Land Reform Programme should utilise the land productively so that as a nation, we benefit.
People are saying why are we not introducing our own currency; our own currency can be introduced if we have resources to back our currency. We should have billions of gold to back our currency. We should sell our resources and perhaps put six billion as reserve and we introduce our own currency. We should not be lazy people. So Madam Speaker, I am appealing to the people of Zimbabwe and I know that my colleagues here are very productive.
Hon. Gangarahwe having passed between the Chair and the Hon.
Member on the floor.
THE HON. DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order.
HON. DR. MUKANDURI: Madam Speaker, let me now go to
the last item which is that, as a nation, the President said that we do not want to be isolated. We should not isolate ourselves. We are living in a globalised village and we should be participating at international forums and even the Commonwealth. If we sought out our problems with the Commonwealth, why not go back to the Commonwealth. But of course, we do not want any dictatorship from any nation. We should have the choice to represent the interests of our people.
So Madam Speaker, I just want to thank His Excellency the
President’s endeavours for us to benefit from this new political dispensation but it requires hard work from all of us. We should be united as a nation and as political parties because this is our country. Zimbabwe is for Zimbabweans. This is our country and if we sellout, we are going to disadvantage ourselves. Zimbabwe will remain Zimbabwe, let us be united. People from the left and the centre, we should have common national interest. Let us defend our national interest because Zimbabwe was born out of the sacrifice of some people who paid a high price. Madam Speaker, let me say with these few words, I thank you for giving me this opportunity.
HON. MAJOME: I thank you Madam Speaker for giving me this
opportunity to debate this motion of congratulations to His Excellency who is the third President of the Republic of Zimbabwe and who happens to be the second Executive President of the Republic of Zimbabwe. I want to support the view that we should be shorter on congratulations, adulations and praise and be longer on insisting and holding to account as my colleagues have said. Because, I fear that if we perpetuate the legacy of bootlicking, hero worshipping and personal worshipping, we are going to land in exactly the same place that this country landed that then required this very radical surgery that was conducted on our Government. So in that vein Mr. Speaker Sir, I will say that I do wish His Excellency the President of Zimbabwe Hon. Emmerson Mnangagwa well. It is actually something that is starting to become familiar on the tongue to say, His Excellency because after 37 years of saying the name of the former President Mugabe, it is quite a pleasing novelty to be able to say another name that is not Robert Mugabe when you refer to your President. So, I wish him good health so that he discharges his mandate and wisdom, the kind of wisdom that Solomon who was the son of David had. Likewise, I wish him good health. I also wish the President of my political party Morgan Tsvangirai good health as well. Having said that, I want to just look at two issues regarding the very difficult task that His Excellency the President has of presiding over a nation that has been ruined systematically and brutally for 37 years. I am so glad that I am not in his shoes because the sheer weight of expectations that Zimbabweans like myself and those that I represent is so high that we almost want to wish that in the six to eight months that there is to the election, we want him to wave a magic wand and fix all the problems. But alas it cannot happen.
Given that what I want to talk about is two issues; in his speech, I do hope that he was sincere and meant each and every word that he said in fostering a new mood in our nation where we come together as a nation, heal the wounds of the past, try to forge a future ahead of rescuing our nation from the very different directions and points that we each love our country from.
With that therefore is the issue of good governance. At this early stage, I welcome his address and in particular I would want him and I hope he will read this to pay attention to the issue of sincerity and particularly good governance. I want to sound alarm bells. There is a truism that as you start so you finish. In these very early days of his term before the election, I want to express my concern so far that when I read his speech, I am very encouraged but there are certain signals that I have been seeing that I believe he should pay particular attention to so that he demonstrates sincerity and generate good will and support of his objectives. If he does not pay attention to the following issues, it will become apparent or to Zimbabweans like myself and those that I represent and others that the more things change the more they remain the same. I think he must work extremely hard to discard certain tendencies that had crept into Government and also to promote hope. The first one is the issue of constitutional implementation which as the motion by Hon. Zindi says, the new dispensation. I believe that the issue of constitutional implementation is very basic and I want to raise an alarm for certain things that have already happened that I do hope he will move with speed and pay more attention towards so that we do not get entangled.
The first issue is around securing judicial independence. In my view, I was dismayed to see what I saw as a disregard of Section 164, the independence of the judiciary when as soon as he was inaugurated, I saw in the media the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Justice,
Legal and Parliamentary Affairs announcing the appointment of judges. Now that I said to myself but in terms of our Constitution the judiciary is independent. It is an independent institution. It has even got a Judicial
Service Commission.
In my view, what I would like to see in this new thrust of implementing the Constitution, if there are going to be judicial appointments of judges, the Judicial Service Commission itself must speak. It is empowered to do so by the Constitution. The Permanent Secretary cannot speak and say we have appointed judges and explained their criteria. It will make it look like…
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. MARUMAHOKO):
Order. Hon Chasi, can you come back to where you have been. HON. MAJOME: It might look like a simple observation but these signals speak volumes. The Judicial Service Commission is independent and let it speak about judges. Let us not see the Ministry of Justice speaking like it owns and runs judges. It used to but it does not do so anymore.
Secondly, there is the issue of traditional leaders. I was very excited and I said now this is a new President who is appointing a new Government. One of the biggest problems we have had is the issue of traditional leaders. I was excited because there was a congress that was coming very soon of his political party ZANU PF. What had become the norm under the rule and governance of Robert Mugabe was the abuse of the institution of traditional leadership and the total disregard of their independence in terms of the Constitution.
Section 213 of the Constitution provides that traditional leadership is independent and in particular it provides that traditional leaders must not act in any partisan manner. I have been seeing traditional leaders going to successive ZANU PF congresses speaking no differently from let us say a commissar of the political party or a chairman of a ward, branch or district. One of them is even remembered as saying and I have to use the Shona word and I will translate that he was expressing support kuti VaMugabe vachatonga kusvika madhongi amera nyanga. It was so secret that Mugabe shall rule until the donkeys have grown horns. Maybe he was prophetic. Maybe there are some donkeys somewhere that have grown horns because the former President Mugabe is no longer ruling Zimbabwe. That was partisan conduct and they were espousing support for that and even campaigning in elections.
I was dismayed to see that in the first opportunity that the President and his Government got to show that they meant what they said and that going to a new Zimbabwe, alas I saw again traditional leaders. For me that was the mark that I was waiting for. I said even these ZANU PF congresses, they are going to depart from the pattern where traditional leaders go and act like ZANU PF card carrying holders, then it is a problem because Section 81 (2) provides that traditional leaders must not be members of any political party or in any way participate in partisan politics.
If you attend a congress of a party not as an observer but as a participant who expresses views and is showing support, you are participating in partisan politics. I was dismayed to see our new President making that pass. They must not act in a partisan manner and they must not further the interests of any political party or cause. My expectation of my new President is that he must..
HON. MLISWA: Mr. Speaker, I rise on a point of order in terms of Standing Order 56 (1) pursuant to the provisions of Section 137 of the Constitution. The quorum of the House must be 70 Members. The Hon. Speaker just addressed the issue on how serious we must be as Members of Parliament in the new dispensation. This is a debate on His Excellency and they seem not to have heard what Hon. Maridadi said that they are hypocrites. This is the hypocrisy that he is talking about.
They are not even here to debate His Excellency. They have gone.
We cannot continue wasting taxpayers’ money all the time. What are they doing when Parliament has paid them and they are not here? It is important that we discharge our duties professionally and I shall not stop raising this point of order until we know what we are here for. We are here to serve the nation. This debate is important and Hon Maridadi said the President is surrounded by hypocrites all the way. They seem not to listen to the debate which was raised by Hon. Maridadi. They have just confirmed it. It is important that people come here for the business of Parliament, nothing else. Not for what they are doing. They have been paid. What else are they doing out there? When we came here, we lobbied for money to come through. They have got their monies. Their kids are in school, what else are they looking for out there?
There are no more factions in ZANU PF unless they are starting to create other factions in ZANU PF and so forth. Can we be progressive as Members of Parliament? This is criminal, unacceptable and as such, that is why I got up to raise a point of order. I thank you.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER: Order, Hon. Member can you
approach the Chair.
Hon. Mliswa approached the Chair.
Bells rung.
Quorum formed.
HON. MATUKE: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. MUKWANGWARIWA: I second
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Tuesday, 16th January, 2018.
On the motion of HON. MATUKE seconded by HON. RUNGANI, the House adjourned at Twenty Nine minutes to Five o’clock p.m, until Tuesday, 16th January, 2018.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Wednesday, 10th January, 2018
The National Assembly met at a Quarter-past Two o’clock p.m.
PRAYERS
(THE ACTING SPEAKER in the Chair) MATTER OF PRIVILEGE
ABSENCE OF MINISTERS
HON. GONESE: I rise on a matter of privilege. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker Sir. As we are all aware, today is Wednesday and on Wednesdays it is Question Time. In terms of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, Section 119 in respect of the role of Parliament, it is very clear that this august has got an obligation to protect this Constitution and also to ensure that the provisions of the Constitution are upheld and that all state institutions and agencies of Government at every level act constitutionally and in the national interest.
You are also aware that in terms of Section 107, it is the obligation of all Hon. Vice Presidents, Ministers of Government and Deputy
Ministers to attend Parliament. Whilst I am happy that the Leader of the House has now walked in but my concern is not new. The challenge we have today is that Hon. Ministers and Vice Presidents are attending a meeting of an organ of a political party. In respect of the provisions which I have cited, we must act in the national interest. Acting in the national interest in my opinion means that we must put Government business and matters of the State above matters of the party. It so happens that the Head of State is also the First Secretary of the governing party and it also happens that the Secretary for
Administration also happens to be the Minister of Home Affairs. I want to believe that the two of them in their capacities as Head of State and Minister of Government respectively should actually prioritise the matters of this nation because as you can see we have got the cameras from ZTV; they are here and the nation of Zimbabwe is expectant. We are having the first Wednesday of the year and members of the public, the people that we represent expect that today matters of concern are going to be articulated and posed to the Hon. Ministers.
Unfortunately, most of the Ministers are attending that Politburo meeting except for the Minister of Mines whom I see and who is not a member of the Politburo and obviously, the Minister of Justice. I believe that it is not fair to the people of Zimbabwe that questions are only posed to those two Ministers when in fact the Head of State and the Secretary for Administration of the governing party have put matters of their party ahead of matters of the nation of Zimbabwe.
It is not a new concern and we have raised it before. One would have expected that with the new dispensation which is now turning out to be not so new, the more things appear to change, the more they remain the same. It appears that they are remaining the same. One would have thought that we were going to have a different approach; we were going to have a scenario where matters of the State are put above matters of the party.
In this regard, I would like your office to express this concern firstly to the head of this institution who also happens to be attending the same Politburo meeting and his deputy who is now the Secretary for
Women’s League and is also attending that same meeting. But, put across our concerns to them firstly as heads of this institution, that as
Members of this august House we are worried that some things are just continuing in the way that they were happening before the new dispensation. Those are our concerns. I thank you.
THE ACTING SPEAKER (HON. MARUMAHOKO): Thank
you Hon Gonese. Your concerns are taken very seriously. It is not the first time for you to stand up in this august House and complain about the absence of Hon. Ministers. Yes, your concerns are taken seriously.
We will discuss that one with the powers that be.
HON. NDUNA: I rise on a point of privilege. Yes, indulge me Mr.
Speaker. I ask your indulgence in that the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education if he so wishes, if he can favour this august House with a Ministerial Statement seeing that schools have started. He has been doing quite a very good job going on radio so vociferously about children going to..
THE ACTING SPEAKER: Order, can you resume your seat. Hon. Member, it would have been prudent for you to put it through a question so that we have more time for questions than discussion. I will give you an opportunity to ask a question to the Minister of Primary and
Secondary Education.
HON. NDUNA: It is not a question.
THE ACTING SPEAKER: Can you pose a question to the
Minister. I will give you that opportunity.
HON. NDUNA: The Minister we are talking about is not here. I am asking through you for there to be favoured this House with a Ministerial Statement that is going to see our children not being turned away from school so that he clarifies the position of children staying in school and not being chased away.
THE ACTING SPEAKER: Point taken Hon Nduna. I thought the
Minister was here. He is not here. We will liaise with him.
ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE
HON. P. D. SIBANDA: My question will be directed to the Leader of Government business and with your indulgence Mr. Speaker, may you allow me to preface my question because it pertains to issues that are currently happening. In my constituency, we have experienced about five Zimbabwean citizens last year who were murdered along the
Zambezi River for purposes of taking body parts including their heads to
Zambia. We have had a number of our fishermen along the Zambezi River being attacked by armed people from the Republic of Zambia and being robbed of their boats and engines. My question to the Leader of Government Business is, what is our policy with regards protection of citizens of this country that are living along the borders with other countries, with specific reference to protection of citizens who live along boundaries which are made up of water bodies? Thank you
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Thank you Mr.
Speaker Sir. I would like to thank the Hon. Member for the question. The policy of Government is that everyone should enjoy the peace and security that can be afforded by our security forces. However, as regards the specific issue that the Hon. Member has referred to – [HON.
MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.]-
THE ACTING SPEAKER: Order, order! I thought this was a very important question. The Minister is trying to answer and you are making a lot of noise at the back.
HON. ZIYAMBI: Thank you Hon. Speaker. The policy of Government is that everyone must enjoy the peace and security that can be afforded by our security forces; that is their duty. However, as regards the specific issue that the Hon. Member has raised, I think I will raise it to the Minister of Home Affairs with a view of ensuring that there is more security in that area given the circumstances that he has mentioned.
HON. NDUNA: Indulge me Mr. Speaker. Now that the Minister of Primary and Secondary Education is now here, with your indulgence, if you may allow me to proffer that question to him. If you then say a
Ministerial Statement is okay for that matter, only then can I proceed. But, if you can allow me to ask him the question in particular about children going back to school not being chased away for lack of fees and all that seeing that this is the beginning of the term.
THE ACTING SPEAKER: Go ahead and ask the question.
HON. NDUNA: My question goes to you Hon. Minister of
Primary and Secondary Education. You have been going on and on, on radio about children not being chased away or supposedly who are not supposed to be chased away from school, in particular primary school education. May you clarify and make it clear to this House what Government policy is regarding children not being chased away from schools for lack of fees in this dire economic edge that we are going through.
THE ACTING SPEAKER: Hon. Nduna, if my memory serves
me right, I saw the Minister on television talking about the same issue that you are raising now.
THE MINISTER OF PRIMARY AND SECONDARY
EDUCATION (HON. PROF. MAVIMA): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
Let me thank Hon. Nduna for that question even though he has made it clear that I have been on radio and you have also confirmed that I have been on television clarifying our policy. I have articulated the same policy here in Parliament and my predecessor, Dr. Dokora has on several occasion articulated the same policy here in Parliament.
However, for the avoidance of doubt, let me state that we are bound by our Constitution to respect the right of the learner to education. On that basis, no school is supposed to turn back any learner for nonpayment which we have already said before. Having said that, our parents have to realise that they have an obligation together with Government to pay. I am appealing here to these national leaders who sit in this august House who have constituencies to work with us in encouraging the parents to pay. It is not about just banks. Order! - [Laughter.] -Yes, the reason why I had to shout order is because this is a very important issue that every Member of Parliament has to take seriously. This issue is about the future of Zimbabwe and we need to take it seriously. We are saying let us help each other so that we make sure that our education system remains viable and functional so that we can prepare future leaders of this country.
As far as the payment system is concerned, we have instructed our schools to provide a variety of payment methods including ecocash.
Some schools are operating on ecocash. Schools in the urban areas,
most of them are now on Point of Sale and also bank transfers. All schools in Zimbabwe have bank accounts where someone can make a deposit. So, let us encourage parents to pay so that we can keep our education system viable and functional.
THE ACTING SPEAKER: Order, order! Hon. Members, may I plead with you, the cameras are watching you. Do not force me to ask you to go outside in front of the cameras.
*HON. NDUNA: There are orphaned children who are of school going age and cannot afford to pay the fees that we are talking about. The Minister is saying that the parents should pay the fees at a later date but there are children who are orphaned without parents. In my constituency, I have advised them to go to school. So, I want to find out what is going to be the fate of such orphaned children?
*THE MINISTER OF PRIMARY AND SECONDARY
EDUCATION (HON. PROF. MAVHIMA): We have the Basic
Education Assistant Module (BEAM) programme. That is the scheme that will assist the vulnerable children. Let me explain to you how this module is assisting kids. Children under BEAM are enrolled at schools even if the school is not paid by BEAM, the children can still access education until the Government department of social welfare has paid for their fees. Schools are experiencing challenges in terms of late payment of fees but children under BEAM are not being denied education nor are they being chased away from school for non- payment of fees. BEAM is operational though it pays late but those who fall under BEAM are able to access education.
*HON. KWARAMBA: The issue that the Minister is talking
about is important but what he is saying is not what is happening in rural areas. Currently, the children who sat for grade seven examinations whose fees were not paid by BEAM are not getting their results until they pay fees. I actually paid for one student who could not access his results under the BEAM programme.
THE HON. SPEAKER: What was the question?
*HON. KWARAMBA: What I am saying is that the Minister
should put it in writing so that the headmasters are aware of that policy pronouncement.
THE HON SPEAKER: You did not pose a question.
*HON. KWARAMBA: I do not know how I can pose the
question because I think it requires a Ministerial Statement.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, when one Member is up, you
cannot just stand up and want to be recognised. Let us follow procedure.
*HON. KWARAMBA: I want to ask is if the Minister is aware of what is happening in schools that children are not accessing education. Those who fall under the BEAM programme are advised to first pay and are not getting their results until they pay.
HON. PROF. MAVHIMA: We have received some complaints
and we are dealing with complaints everyday about situations, not necessarily BEAM alone but also from those parents who have been paying from their own pockets. The instruction to our headmasters is very clear. We have told them not to withhold results but to make a payment arrangement with the parents. However, there is a call now for communication with the headmasters so that we do not have these issues again. As soon as I leave this place, I am going to communicate with the permanent secretary so that she communicates with our structures to erase that problem for good.
*HON. MUNENGAMI: The Minister first said the parents
should own up and pay the school fees. Is he saying that he is now in agreement with the Minister of Finance on the fact that they are no longer able to pay the teachers under the ECD programme. After some time we also heard the Minister of Education saying that the teachers will now be paid by the Government. So, now there is inconsistence in terms of policy pronouncement. Our request is for the Minister to clarify to us the actual position. Is it that parents need to look for funds to pay the ECD teachers or it is the duty of Government to ensure that these teachers are paid?
HON. PROF. MAVHIMA: Let me say that there is no policy inconsistence between ourselves and the Ministry of Finance. The teachers who are in-stream and teaching ECD continue to be supported by Treasury, so there was no policy change there. We needed to recruit about 6000 additional teachers for ECD – almost 6 000 on number, but Treasury indicated that, at this particular point in time, we do not have the fiscal space to do that. In actual fact, the several meetings which we have had with the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning as well as at the level of our officials, the Ministry of Finance has promised that as soon as the fiscal space permits, we are going to allow the recruitment of additional teachers. Therefore, we are going to continue the same way we did last year with the current resources in ECD that we have. Where schools can afford to add, they are allowed to add, using SDC funds and that will alleviate some of the problems that we have. Schools have done this with other areas where there is a shortage and because we do not have adequate funds coming from Treasury, schools have come along and helped us.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, I am advised that the maximum number of supplementary questions has been exhausted. On the ECD issue the Hon Minister has been very explicit so there is no need for a Ministerial Statement in that regard. As far as fees are concerned and denial of students or pupils to go back to school, the Minister has committed himself to immediately instruct the Permanent Secretary to ensure that students are not denied access to school. Nothing more can be further from the truth. Thank you.
HON. CHAKONA: Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. My
question is directed to the Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, Hon. Moyo. I will preface my question so that it becomes clear...
THE HON. SPEAKER: Ah! No statement before questions, just
ask questions straight to the Minister.
HON. CHAKONA: My question to the Minister is that there are a
lot of illegal structures in urban and rural areas. What is the Ministry’s policy with regards to either regularisation or destruction of those illegal structures so that the objective of attaining 400 000 houses can be met? I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT, PUBLIC WORKS AND NATIONAL HOUSING (HON. J. MOYO): Thank
you Mr. Speaker. I want to thank the Hon. Member for asking me the policy of Government regarding unplanned settlements which are found all over the country. We are in the process of regularising some of them, but we start with the premise that the home seeker is genuine in wanting to have shelter over their head. Unfortunately, in the process - because of this demand we created a number of people who became business people who wanted to take advantage of many home seekers that are there in the country, but our premise is that the home seeker is a genuine person.
Our second aspect is that those who have settled in wetland areas and those who have settled in areas that are reserved for services such as sewerage and other places will get our first priority in order to find alternative accommodation or stands for them. The second aspect that we have is that because these settlements have no access to services such as sewerage or water, we think it causes hazards in the running of the municipalities, cities or towns in our country. Therefore, we need to pay attention so that we can bring those services to the people.
So, in the hierarchy of things, we want to protect our environment so that our water bodies such as those which provide water to cities are not polluted because people have no places where they can build their own sewerage systems or septic tanks, and they rely on going to the bush - and that is our priority. This is because those wetlands are very fragile. We also think that we owe it to the environment to make sure that we attend to it.
The second attempt is to make sure that we bring services to the people. At the same time, we are aware that there are a number of people who have benefitted unduly because of this situation and we will let the law take its course. Of course, we will provide information where we have information and I think we have some information about what has been going wrong. The policy is very clear that people want accommodation and they want to be settled so that their families can have a roof over their heads.
Going forward, we have said no unplanned settlement is allowed in any part of the country and our department of Physical Planning as well as local authorities must be alive to the fact that we have a planning regime which requires that any settlement in this country is under some form of one local authority or the other. It is either in the rural district council area or it is in the urban council area and those councils have the responsibility as planning authorities to approve those plans. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, while I was putting on my gown I followed a point of privilege raised by Hon. Gonese concerning attendance by Hon. Ministers. I want to put the record straight. The planned meeting of the ruling party where some members of Cabinet are Members was planned on the understanding that Parliament was only going to sit next week. We were not supposed to have come this week. Secondly, it is agreed after my conversation with His Excellency that because a number of Ministries do not have Deputy Ministers, in future arrangements will be made that there is no clash in terms of dates for Wednesday questions. I thought I should clarify that.
*HON. MAHOKA: Thank you Mr. Speaker...
HON. ADV. CHAMISA: Sorry, just a point of order Hon.
Speaker.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Why do you now allow the Hon.
Member to ask?
HON. ADV. CHAMISA: In terms of procedure, it is something that is very important on what you have said.
HON. MAHOKA: Ndini ndarecognizwaka.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Can we converse?
Hon. Adv. Chamisa having approached the Speaker’s Chair.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Just a second. Sorry can we hear the
Hon. Adv. Chamisa.
HON. ADV. CHAMISA: Thank you Hon. Speaker Sir. It is not good to fail to acknowledge good things when they are done by good people. You have done a very responsible thing Hon. Speaker to make an appropriate apology to Parliament and to indicate that these were circumstances beyond our control. This is responsible from your office and from your Chair. We want to acknowledge it as Parliament but more importantly, we must thank you for also leaving the Politburo to come here to preside over this Parliament.
It is very important and the reason I am doing that is because we always attack when there is an omission and a commission that is an infraction on our Parliamentary duties, but when it is done properly, we must thank you. I just wanted to acknowledge this so that we are progressive where there is need but where there is dereliction and also a lackadaisical approach, we will always come pouncing like a pounced hammer to make sure that things are in order. – [HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear.]-
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. Hon. Adv. Chamisa, we thank you for your acknowledgement of the circumstances. Hon. Members, there are these two vehicles that have obstructed other vehicles –[HON. ZWIZWAI: NdeyaChinotimba.]- Hon. Member, I think I have suffered you a lot, please can you go out. I called you twice the other day and I warned you that you do not interrupt the Chair that way.
Hon. Zwizwai having approached the Speaker’s Chair.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. Is Hon. Chinotimba here? The Hon. Member has apologised and so the matter rests there. Yes, he has apologised so the matter rests there. Right, these are the two vehicles, AEE 2642 and ABE 8681. If they are not removed, then they will be clamped.
*HON. MAHOKA: The Minister explained concerning people
who are settled on wetlands but some of that land was actually allocated to those people illegally. Nevertheless, those houses built on wetlands can be destroyed by the responsible local authorities. Therefore my question is; what is Government policy concerning the protection of those people who had built their houses there? Are they going to be compensated for the houses they have built there or the houses are just going to be destroyed and it ends there?
THE HON. SPEAKER: It is against the policy pronounced by the Hon. Minister Moyo. So, it does not arise.
HON. MAONDERA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My
supplementary question to Hon. Minister Moyo…
THE HON. SPEAKER: There is no supplementary. I have
discounted that question. So, I want a new question.
HON. MAONDERA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir for your
indulgence. My new question is directed to the Hon. Minister of Local Government, Hon. Minister Moyo. What is Government policy regarding heavy vehicles…
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, you are an Hon. Member. The
Standing Orders say, you address the Hon. Ministers as Hon. Ministers.
HON. MAONDERA: Thank you Hon. Speaker. Thank you. THE HON. SPEAKER: Yes.
HON. MAONDERA: Hon. Minister, my question is; what is
Government policy regarding heavy vehicles and haulage trucks going to residential areas given the fact that most of them are causing accidents? Just like today in Glen Norah, we have lost three lives; two children and one man. They have been crushed by a trailer of a bus that came off its horse. What is Government policy relative to stopping those vehicles and haulage trucks from going to residential areas in all urban local authorities? Thank you.
THE HON. SPEAKER: I am really agonising but I am leaving it
to the Hon. Minister.
THE MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT, PUBLIC
WORKS AND NATIONAL HOUSING (HON. J. MOYO): Hon.
Member, our planning policy in urban areas includes transportation without excluding inter-provincial transportation. It allows heavy vehicles to pass through particular routes and not through any other routes. So when a truck is now found in a residential area, it is most likely that the driver will have broken the law because the zoning does not allow it to be there. Thank you Mr. Speaker.
*HON. MAJAYA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question is
directed to the Leader of the House, Hon. Minister Ziyambi. What is Government policy concerning banks that are denying people from opening new accounts as of now and yet a person will have just assumed employment but unable to open a bank account?
The Minister of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs having risen to answer the question.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Leader of the House, you are
taking over my chairmanship. I was going to correct the Hon. Member.
The Minister responsible is here and I am sure he can answer.
*THE. DEPUTY MINISTER OF FINANCE AND
ECONOMIC PLANNING (HON. MUKUPE): Thank you for the
correction. What I want to say is that banks are private enterprises and they have the right to put policies that regulate who can open a bank account with them. There is no policy that forces them to open an account for anyone and it is entirely up to them to accept you to be their client or not. What I know is that there are banks such as P.O.S.B whose operations are directed by Government policy and those have no way of denying you opening an account with them. Hence, I urge those who have failed to open bank accounts with other banks to consider going to POSB.
HON. P. D. SIBANDA: Hon Minister, from the back of my mind, I thought there was a Government policy of inclusivity in terms of banking. Now, if you are saying those that cannot access …
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, no prefix please. Go to the
question.
HON. P. D. SIBANDA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. Hon. Minister, is
it not Government policy that there should be inclusivity in terms of banking and accessibility of banking services by every Zimbabwean? Is it not Government policy that Zimbabweans should access banking services easily?
HON. MUKUPE: I thank you for that question. Indeed, it is Government policy that banking services have to be inclusive and accessible. However, it does not necessarily mean that when you are talking about inclusivity, you have to force every bank to accept opening an account for every applicant. That is why we say entities like the POSB can be found in high density areas and some of the most remote areas to ensure inclusivity. In terms of accessibility, the banking services are accessible to you whether in electronic form, physically and in any other medium possible. That is what we are saying in terms of our policy; be it mobile banking or swipe machines and that is what we talk about in terms of accessibility. We have done that in terms of our policy thrust. Therefore, we have made sure that banking services are accessible. I thank you.
Hon. P. D. Sibanda having risen to ask another supplementary question.
THE HON. SPEAKER: You cannot ask a supplementary
question twice Sorry, you cannot. No, that is not a ministerial statement.
HON. ZINDI: Thank you Hon. Speaker. My question is directed to the Hon. Minister of Mines. What is the policy of the Ministry with regards to artisanal miners whom they have actually asked to open bank accounts? Also they have spent three months without paying them because they have not opened the bank accounts. What measures have they put in place in order to ensure that gold does not find its way on the black market because artisanal miners were depositing their gold with Fidelity? What measures have they put in place in order to curb that leakage?
THE MINISTER OF MINES AND MINING
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHITANDO): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
I acknowledge the question from the Hon. Member. The Ministry has been working very closely with the mining associations to ensure that all gold mined finds its way to Fidelity. There is a Gold Mobilisation Unit deployed and more members will be deployed in the coming week to ensure that all gold mined finds its way to Fidelity.
*HON. ZINDI: Thank you Hon. Speaker, I think the Hon. Minister did not understand my question. Let me ask in vernacular language….
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order, HON. ZINDI: Ooh gosh!
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, you cannot say ohsh to the Chair.
HON. ZINDI: I said gosh!
THE HON. SPEAKER: Yes, you cannot say that!
HON. ZINDI: I withdraw.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Also, do not imply that the Hon.
Minister does not understand English, so can you ask the supplementary in English?
HON. ZINDI: Hon. Speaker, it was not intended to undermine the Minister in terms of ….
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order, ask the question.
HON. ZINDI: Mr. Speaker Sir, it was not intended to undermine the Minister in terms of his proficiency to understand English, no, but perhaps, I am the one who failed to explain myself, hence I did not get the response that I wanted, that is why I want to use Shona.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Please, ask the supplementary in
English.
*HON. ZINDI: Hon. Speaker, ndoda kuti nditi – [HON.
MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] – Ndakumbira. Hon. Speaker, the Ministry of Mines and Mining Development informed artisanal miners that no one will be given cash and they were advised to open bank accounts whilst at the same time the Ministry had not plugged the loopholes to ensure that there are no leakages in terms of gold. They were now taking the gold and selling it to other illegal dealers. So, what measures have they put in place to ensure that they plug these illegal leakages to ensure that gold finds its way to Fidelity. He has told us that they have in place a Gold Mobilisation Unit to ensure that all gold is taken to Fidelity and that it goes to Government. It is now three months since this was announced. There are those artisanal miners who are mining gold who have not been paid because of that pronouncement to open bank accounts. So, what is it that they intend to do to ensure that gold does not find its way through illegal means? I thank you.
HON. CHITANDO: There are three aspects which I would like to respond to the Hon. Member’s question. The first aspect is that we are encouraging all gold producers including artisanal miners to open bank accounts so that transactions can be done through the banks. At the same time, we are working with Fidelity to ensure that cash is disbursed for those deliveries. Also, in terms of the Gold Mobilisation Unit, I recognised and accept that the presence in the field has not been adequate. So arrangements are in place to ensure that there is more coverage by members of the Gold Mobilisation Unit. In the last two weeks, we have had the unit going out and reaching out to a number of operational areas throughout the country. I thank you.
HON. ZWIZWAI: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I want to thank you for forgiving me the time I angered you. May God bless you. My supplementary question to the Hon. Minister of Mines and Mining Development is related to the leakages. In the past, on the issue of leakages in the Ministry, you gave a pronouncement of 15 billion missing and that a Ministerial Statement will be brought to Parliament. Hon. Chidhakwa left office without bringing the Ministerial Statement on this issue. Since he has come in as new Minister, my request is that he should inform us on the progress regarding the issue of a Ministerial Statement on the missing $15 billion worth of diamonds. Hon. Speaker, it is an issue to this august House so that you give a ruling. This is something that should be explained to the people and should be done in vernacular so that people understand especially those in rural areas. I thank you.
HON. CHITANDO: I will answer the question in two parts. Firstly, with respect to gold leakages, I can assure Hon. Members that there will be a Ministerial Statement before the end of this month whereby a number of interventions are being crafted more so in line with the 100-Day Action Programme. Secondly, with respect to the diamonds, there will be some diamond sales in February and then another statement will come in place which will cover modalities.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Minister, there is a legacy issue which was raised by the Hon. Member, a statement on the alleged 15 billion dollars worth of diamonds that are not accounted for. That Ministerial Statement did not come through.
HON. CHITANDO: I acknowledge the question and also the
legacy issue. What I want to assure the House is that like I implied earlier on, there is a sale. During the last year 2017, no diamonds were sold. There will be a first batch which is due for sale in February and when that happens, a modus operandi which covers the controls and accountabilities relating to that will be announced without fail – [AN
HON. MEMBER: Point of clarity.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. Here is a questioner. Can you clarify the question?
*HON. ZWIZWAI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I want to thank the Hon. Minister for the statement that he will bring to the House when diamonds are sold in the future. We applaud that as the august House.
It shows that there is now transparency but my question was not on that. My question is on the issues that happened before the new dispensation or the new era. There are diamonds worth $15 billion that were not accounted for and were mentioned by the former President at the airport after his visit to China. That issue was questioned in Parliament and
Minister Chidhakwa, your predecessor gave a commitment to the Hon. Speaker that he would bring a Ministerial Statement to explain and clarify what happened to those diamonds, where they went and account for the $15 billion.
So, my question is what measures do you have as a Ministry, because your permanent secretary was not changed. What changed are only Ministers. What plans do you have or when do you think you will be able to bring a statement to account for the $15 billion worth of diamonds that went unaccounted for?
HON. MLISWA: On a point of order Mr. Speaker. As the
Chairman for the Mines and Energy Committee, we are seized with the matter and I think it would be proper to allow the Committee to do its job. It is important that we follow the due process. We have already resolved that we shall bring all the parties involved to answer. So, for us to have the Minister responding to that would prejudice our work as a Committee at the end of the day. May you allow our Committee to discharge its duties pertaining to this issue? Thank you Mr. Speaker –
[HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order.
HON. CHITANDO: Mr. Speaker Sir, I heard the supplementary question from the Hon. Member. There is a process which is underway which was initiated to give a comprehensive response to that and that will be given in due course. In the meantime, if there are any specific details which the Hon. Member wants covered in that process, that I request could be put in writing – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. I think let us allow the due process of investigation through the Committee on Mines and Energy and the two, I am sure should come up with a comprehensive report that will be delivered by that Committee. I believe the Committee will engage the Hon. Minister and the Ministry so that there is some investigation in detail. Thank you.
HON. MUTSEYAMI: Supplementary question.
THE HON. SPEAKER: There is no supplementary on that.
HON. MUTSEYAMI: On the first question that was asked by
Hon. Zindi.
THE HON. SPEAKER: No, you are being unprocedural. You should have asked that question immediately after Hon. Zindi.
HON. MUTSEYAMI: The question arose to the Hon. Minister as a result of the supplementary question from the Hon. Member and by then I was as well asking a supplementary question.
THE HON. SPEAKER: It should have been done immediately.
HON. MUTSEYAMI: How could it have been done immediately when we were having the same floor at the same time? – [HON.
MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. You cannot do that. You can ask a fresh question.
HON. HOLDER: Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister of Mines and Mining Development, Hon. Winston Chitando. Could he update this House on the reopening of the Shabani Mine that is currently in process?
THE MINISTER OF MINES AND MINING
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHITANDO): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
Firstly, I would like to probably recap on what has been happening on Shabani Mine in the sense that the reopening of Shabani Mine has largely been hampered by lack of capital. I am sure what the Hon. Member is referring to is, there is currently some activity happening in the area which is two-fold. Firstly, Mr. Speaker, there is in progress now, dewatering of the mine in Mashava which, I am sure, Hon.
Members would know has been flooded for a while. That dewatering process is underway as we talk now, and we expect that the mine will be dewatered by December. At the same time, Mr. Speaker Sir, we have recognised that to partly address issues relating to funding of the mine, we have identified reprocessing of one of the dumps as a low hanging
fruit.
As we talk now, we do have about 50 people at the dump, mobilising to start the reprocessing of the dump which should commence by May this year wherein we expect to have 150 people peaking at 350, to reprocess that dump. The whole game plan being that the funds that will be raised from the reprocessing of that dump will then be used to reopen Mashava Mine when we finish dewatering in December this year. The Hon. Member is right, there is some activity that is taking place; but it is limited at this stage to dewatering of the mine in Mashava and commencement of reprocessing of the dump in Zvishavane to get low hanging fruit, the cash to enable us to start reopening Mashava.
HON. HOLDER: My supplementary question is, has
Government found a new investor or is it ZMDC or African Associated Mines - if that can be clarified.
HON. CHITANDO: Thank you Mr. Speaker. On whether an investor has been found, the answer is no. The mine falls under ZMDC at the moment, so what is happening is Government is working together with the administrator and ZMDC on plans to ensure that the mine or some of the operations get back to generating employment and revenue for the country. I thank you.
HON. DR. SHUMBA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I would like to have the Minister of Mines and Mining Development clarify the issue of reopening the mine, the issue of recapitalisation of the mine, in light of the reconstruction law pertaining to SML. It is impossible, Hon. Speaker, that we may progress on the issue if the issue of ownership is still in dispute. I may also want to get maybe the Leader of the House to assist in regard to the policy of the expropriation and return of assets that were owned by black businessmen in this respect. Thank you.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Can you address the question to the
Hon. Minister of Mines and Mining Development first and foremost.
HON. DR. SHUMBA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. My address is to the Hon. Minister of Mines and Mining Development, Minister Chitando. Thank you.
THE HON. SPEAKER: And not to the Leader of Government
Business.
HON. DR. SHUMBA: Indeed.
HON. CHITANDO: Mr. Speaker Sir, I am not sure whether I
quite understand the question, but I will try to answer it. I think if I get the question well is, what are the plans to recapitalise and reopen the mine? I am not sure whether that is the question, Mr. Speaker Sir.
THE HON. SPEAKER: The question is, Hon. Minister, you are reconstructing and revamping the mine, have you sorted out the issue of ownership of that mine.
HON. CHITANDO: Currently, Mr. Speaker Sir, there is an administrator who is taking charge of the day to day operations of the company and in line with trying to revive the economy the plans have been put in place to get back some of the operations into a generative stage so as to generate employment and revenue for the country.
HON. MUSANHI: My question is directed to the Minister of Mines and Mining Development. Minister, the Mines and Minerals Act has been outstanding on the amendments for a very long time. When is it going to come to this House for amendment?
THE MINISTER OF MINES AND MINING
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHITANDO): Mr. Speaker, there are
already plans for a meeting with the Parliamentary Committee on Mines and Energy to look at a number of issues which include the outstanding matters relating to amendments to the Mines and Minerals Act. So, maybe if we could be given the chance to engage the Parliamentary
Committee and then give a statement after that engagement.
THE HON. SPEAKER: The questioner appears not to be satisfied. The Chair understands that - when do you think you will bring the Bill to Parliament so that it is debated in Parliament and passed as a law, it is the timeline.
HON. CHITANDO: Mr. Speaker Sir, we have a scheduled meeting with the Parliamentary Committee on Mines and Energy next week at which those issues, the outstanding matters, will be discussed and I am sure soon after that - I am not sure what the lead times would be as to from the Committee meeting to coming back into Parliament, but I would like to think - certainly, we need closure on amendments to the Mines and Minerals Act, because it also gives the investors peace of mind.
HON. DR. SHUMBA: I would like to remind the Hon. Minister of Mines and Mining Development that his predecessor had already conceded to all the issues that the Mines and Energy Portfolio…
THE HON. SPEAKER: You want to remind the Hon. Minister or you want to inform? He was not there, how can you remind him.
HON. DR. SHUMBA: No, I am trying to ask a question but in order not to ambush the Minister, I have to give him a bit of space to understand.
THE HON. SPEAKER: You want to inform, not to remind.
HON. DR. SHUMBA: Has the Hon. Minister of Mines and Mining Development taken note that his predecessor had conceded to all the legislative issues that were outstanding regarding the Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill?
HON. CHITANDO: Mr. Speaker Sir, there were a number of issues which are outstanding from amendments from that Bill and the responses which were made by my predecessor have and will be taken into account in the deliberations when the Bill comes back to this House.
Thank you.
HON. MAKONYA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question is directed to the Deputy Minister of Finance and Economic Development, Hon. Minister Mukupe. In this new dispensation we had some people who had contrabands of cash in their hide outs. My question is when this money was impounded, where is it being kept? Was it returned for safety to the Reserve Bank since it was an amount of $10 million?
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. In terms of the judicial process when a matter is before the court it is subjudice. You cannot discuss it. Thank you.
*HON. NHAMBU: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question is directed to the Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, Hon. J. Moyo. What is Government policy regarding rural local authorities such as councils who are allocating stands to banks who will then build houses in those areas but the house will be beyond the rich or the targeted group which is the low wage income earners? – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] -
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order. Hon. Nhambu, your question is
very operational, it is not policy.
*HON. PHIRI: Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Minister of Home Affairs or if he is not here to the Leader of the House. We have a lot of people who are failing to register as voters because they cannot access long birth certificates in particular the elderly. As Government, how can you relax these rules so that these elderly people can access this precious document for voter registration?
*THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): I want to thank
Hon. Phiri for this question on these long birth certificates. The officers in the Registrar-General’s office would want to first of all access and certify that your parents were genuinely Zimbabweans and even if one of the parents is a Zimbabwean, you can also be given that long birth certificate. In this case when you are an elderly person who no longer has any parents, there will be some investigations that have to be carried out. What is essential is that when you go for registration, you need that long birth certificate because it shows the details of your mother and father.
*HON. PHIRI: I want to thank the Minister for his response. As it is now, we are on the last stage of the biometric voter registration and the Minister is saying there are going to be some consultations regarding the acquisition of a long birth certificate but time is not on our side.
*HON. ZIYAMBI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I am going to hold consultations today with the Minister of Home Affairs so that he can tell me how the elderly people can access these long birth certificates when they no longer have witnesses such as their fathers and mothers who are long dead.
*HON. CHIBAYA: Thank you very much Hon. Speaker. As a
supplementary question...
*HON. PHIRI: On a point of order Mr. Speaker Sir.
THE HON. SPEAKER: What is your point of order?
*HON. PHIRI: We have a member who is in this House who is using a derogatory term referring to the people of Malawi an origin as mabrandaya or manyasaland which is a derogatory name, we refer to such people as tribalists – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, Hon. Phiri, we want to know who
said that?
*HON. PHIRI: It is the short Member of Parliament who is sitting on the other side of the House – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order. Can the Hon. Member withdraw
the statement?
HON. PEDZISAI: I withdraw my statement Mr. Speaker.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, I did not hear you Hon. Member.
HON. PEDZISAI: I withdraw my statement Mr. Speaker.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Thank you.
*HON. CHIBAYA: Thank you very much Hon. Speaker. My
supplementary question is on acquisition of long birth certificates, Hon. Ziyambi, regarding the question asked by Hon. Phiri. We are aware that the process of registering voters in the BVR is coming to an end. There are still long queues and at a time, only few people are registered yet there are long queues. What processes are you taking so that you can ease this problem of people acquiring their identity documents so that they can engage in the biometric voter registration programme?
*HON. ZIYAMBI: I thank the Hon. Member for the
supplementary questions. The officers from the Registrar General and the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission were working in unison whereby somebody would acquire the necessary documents and then go and register in the biometric voter registration. My hope is that the people from the Registrar General’s office will also be part of the group which is going to do the mop up exercise so that it is easier for people to acquire these necessary documents. If the Hon. Member is aware of some places whereby the officials from the two departments have not visited for operations and registration, please submit the names so that we can direct mobile teams to go and register those people.
*HON. CHIBAYA: My supplementary question to the Hon.
Minister is that the Minister has given the response to the long birth certificates but the problem which is inherent in this programme is that we have aliens who came to this country and only had identity cards but fortunately as you have made a new ruling that children who were born by aliens – if they have these long certificates and identity cards, they can change these certificates. We now have these aged parents who only have the certificates which they brought from their country of origin.
The problem they face when they go to the Registrar General’s office to get citizenship, they are denied the long birth certificate because they never had the chance of acquiring this document.
As a Ministry, what are you doing to alleviate the problem that is being faced by these people who cannot acquire the documents because they never acquired the required documents at that time?
*HON. ZIYAMBI: My response will be based on the Constitution of our country. Section 43 says that “…a citizen of a country which became a member of SADC established by a treaty signed at Windhoek in the Republic of Namibia on the 17th of August 1992 or he or she was ordinarily resident in Zimbabwe on the publication date…” This means that if you can prove what is written down here so that the officials are satisfied that you were definitely a citizen or resident in this country for a continuous period, they will accept and then give you the necessary documents. My plea is that if there are any problems being faced by the aliens, it means that people are being illogical or are acting illegally because the High Court has said aliens have to be registered but there are requirements which one has to fulfill according to the Constitution and you can also access registration as a voter.
HON. GONESE: I move that the time for Questions Without
Notice be extended.
HON. TOFFA: I second.
*HON. MUNENGAMI: On a point of clarity Hon. Speaker…
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have not recognised you. You do not speak before I recognise you.
HON. MUNENGAMI: I am sorry Hon. Speaker.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Can you proceed briefly?
*HON. MUNENGAMI: In brief as the Hon. Speaker has stated, we have some of our residents in this country who have identity documents marked ‘alien’. When they go for registration at the Registrar General’s office, they are being denied the chance of being citizens of Zimbabwe - the main reason being that they do not have long birth certificates. When this case was brought to the High Court, they were told that if they have a long birth certificate and an identity card which is marked ‘alien’, they can register but we have people who do not have long birth certificates but only have an identity card marked ‘alien’ – how can they be assisted?
*HON. ZIYAMBI: I have explained this before. The problem we are facing is not a problem of registration as being done by the people at the Registrar-General’s office. What you are talking about is the acquisition of a citizenship of Zimbabwe. These people should first of all prove that they have been residing in Zimbabwe for such and such a time. There are some requirements which are needed so that they can prove that they have been resident in Zimbabwe. We need some foolproof measures because we have some corrupt people who will take advantage of this situation and register. These people need to be vetted. What we know is that the people who have the right to vote are citizens of Zimbabwe, bona-fide citizens of Zimbabwe. The people in the
Registrar General’s office should be satisfied that the person who has come with an identity card marked ‘A’ without a long birth certificate, they have to be shown – that is definitely a bona-fide resident of Zimbabwe and has been in the country for such a time as required by the Constitution.
*HON. MACHINGAUTA: My supplementary question to the
Hon. Minister is, is the Minister aware that when the office of the Registrar General promised to go around the country to issue identity cards, they did not do that? Is the Minister also aware that when people need the services of the Registrar-General’s office, they have to go a day earlier so that they put up there and be the first to be served in the morning? If he is aware, what steps is his Ministry taking to alleviate this problem?
HON. ZIYAMBI: This appears like a new question because people have been asking questions on birth certificates. The question is talking about an incident whereby people are taking long in the queues and that they are even putting up at the Registrar-General’s office so that they can be served earlier. We need to visit this office and make enquiries as to why people are putting up there. I request that the Hon.
Member put the question in writing so that we can direct it to the
Minister of Home Affairs and receive a comprehensive response.
HON. NYANHONGO: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My question
is directed to the Hon. Minister of Mines. Hon. Minister, we are made to understand that platinum is associated with other seven minerals. What are we doing as a Government to try and separate those other minerals so that they do not go to South Africa as one mineral, platinum yet we know there are other seven minerals? Is there any measure that Government is taking to make sure that these other seven minerals are separated here in Zimbabwe?
THE MINISTER OF MINES AND MINING
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHITANDO): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
The Hon. Member is indeed right that platinum is associated with seven other minerals; actually it is eight minerals which do exist in that concentrate. The process of separating those minerals is that firstly, they go through base metal refinery which will systematically remove the base minerals in the concentrate. Thereafter, the residue is sent to a precious metal refinery which will take out the remainder of the minerals.
The beneficiation policy by Government is targeted at having the industry setting up initially smelters because before you get to a base metal refinery, the first stage of value addition is smelting and thereafter base metal refining which will enable the first stage of the extraction of the minerals to take place. Hence, the beneficiation policy and discussion which are taking place with the industry. I thank you Mr.
Speaker.
HON. MUTSEYAMI: Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question is directed to the Hon. Minister of Transport. With your indulgence Mr. Speaker Sir, my question is to do with one of our national road which is so much of national importance to the country; the road which stretches from Birchenough Bridge – Tanganda – Chiredzi. The Minister last year in February, specifically pointed out that they had somehow acquired some money to manage the road. With all due respect Hon. Minister, may you update this House as well as the nation as to the update with regard to the take off of the project bearing in mind that you have a clear picture of the condition of the road as we speak today. What is it that people are to expect in terms of getting that road to normal viz-a-viz the situation that we had earlier on with regard to the court case which was disturbing this process for the road to take off.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Thank you Hon. Mutseyami for asking that question. It is true that the delay to implement the construction of the road was caused by the dispute which the Hon. Member has referred to. I am glad to say that the dispute is over and I am also glad to say that as we speak the company that is going to do the construction - I think is already on the site or on its way. It is unfortunate that Hon. Mutseyami could not meet with me on Thursday when I was in Mutare where I made that announcement, but I can safely tell the Hon. Member that the waiting is over and construction is now going to take place. The contractor is already on his way.
*HON. CHINOTIMBA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I am directing my question to the Minister of Agriculture, Hon. Rtd P. Shiri. My question is we experienced the heat wave in the past few days but just yesterday we received some rains. How are you going to assist commercial farmers in acquiring irrigation facilities, especially in the construction of dams so that even if we have very little rains, these farmers are able to irrigate their crops?
THE MINISTER OF LANDS, AGRICULTURE AND RURAL
RESETTLEMENT (HON. RTD AIR CHIEF MARSHALL SHIRI):
Hon. Chinotimba has asked a very pertinent question regarding the support on programmes on the farms. It is our hope and policy that we need to have a lot of water bodies. We were informed that Zimbabwe has 10 000 water bodies which are dams and we also have rivers which flow throughout the year. Consequently, we have to utilise these water bodies in irrigation programmes. As a Ministry, we are in discussion with the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning particularly the Treasury so that they can allocate some funds so that we can work with other countries that can help in the construction of irrigation facilities, especially those which are redundant or suffering from siltation. We are aware of your problem and are really looking into it. We are also into partnerships with other organisations from other countries that may want to help us in alleviating this problem.
Questions Without Notice were interrupted by THE HON. SPEAKER in terms of Standing Order No. 64.
ORAL ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS WITH NOTICE
POLICY ON INFORMAL SECTOR WORKERS SOCIAL
WELFARE
- HON. MANGWENDE asked the Minister of Labour and Social
Welfare to state the policy in place to cater for the Social Welfare of workers in the informal sector.
HON. GONESE: On a point of order Mr. Speaker. I have noted that these questions have been deferred since October. Question Number 3 to the Minister of Health and Child Care was deferred from the 18th of October; question number 2 deferred from the 11th of October, question number from the 18th of October, question number 5 from the 18th of October, and question number 6 from the 18th of October as well. The only relatively recent question is question number 7 which was only deferred from the 6th of December.
Mr. Speaker, the purpose of putting questions in writing is to enable the Minister and Ministry officials to respond in writing and there is also a provision that if the Minister is not available, another Minister can be delegated to come to respond on behalf of the Minister. So, as far as I am concerned Mr. Speaker, it is not good enough to say that the Minister of Health and Child Care is not there. He is not required to be personally present, but answers must be prepared by his Ministry officials and the Ministry officials then furnish the Leader of the House with the responses. The Leader of the House then assigns available Ministers. As we speak today, we have Hon. Minister Dr. Gumbo, and we have Hon. Minister Moyo who are both present in the House and if they had been furnished with the answers, they would have been in a position to respond.
I believe that Mr. Speaker, the Hon. Minister of Health and Child Care is showing disdain and contempt of this august institution and I believe that the Administration of Parliament must make it known to the Hon. Minister and his Ministry officials that they should prepare the appropriate responses if the Minister is not personally available, those responses can then be given to another Minister who can respond on behalf of the Minister. That is my observation and I believe that this should be communicated to the Hon. Minister and his officials.
THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. MARUMAHOKO):
Thank you Hon. Gonese, indeed your observations are quite genuine and, it is a worry also to note that these questions have been deferred from October up to today. So, I will ask the Leader of the House to probably direct the officials of Parliament to write to the Minister and raise the concerns that you actually put forward in this House.
ROAD GRADING ALONG SKYLINE-MUBAIRA CHEGUTU ROAD
- HON. GANGARAHWE asked the Minister of Transport and
Infrastructural Development to inform the House –
- Why no road grading has taken place along the SkylineMubaira/Chegutu road in the Mhondoro and Mubaira in Mashonaland West Constituency contrary to the assurance given on the 17th of May, 2017 that the activity would be done over a period of one month;
- To further state whether the second phase which was expected to commence on the 1st of July, 2017, would be on course in view of the fact that the 2017 – 18 rainy season is fast approaching and might affect those roads which were rendered impassable during the 2016 -17 season despite the bill of quantities having been made for Mupfure and Nyagambu bridges.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Mr. Speaker, works have indeed commenced on the grading of the Skyline-Mubaira-Chegutu road. However, the grader which was being used has since broken down and efforts are being made to repair it.
Works will resume as soon as the grader has been repaired.
Further on the second part of the question; Mr. Speaker Sir, the department of Roads under my Ministry has already started works on the Mupfure Bridge and the project is nearing completion. The Nyagambu Bridge is being done under DDF and is also expected to be completed before the onset of the rains.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I just want to say that, these answers are now coming after a very long time. So, the progress on these roads is far much advanced than the answer that I am giving right now, because this answer should have been given a long time ago but Parliament has not been sitting. So, progress has taken place on the questions that are being asked now. I thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
REOPENING OF PEACE MINE IN SILOBELA
- HON. M. M. MPOFU: asked the Minister of Mines and
Mining Development to explain why the Ministry has not yet reopened Peace Mine in Silobela in the Midlands Province, considering that when the Ministry closed the mine that it was on the grounds of restructuring the operations.
THE MINISTER OF MINES AND MINING
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHITANDO): Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
With respect to Peace Mine, the mine has initially been under wrangle in terms of the ownership of the mining claims. The long and short of it is that there is a tribute agreement which expired in October 2017 and the registered owner of the claims has indicated that he is not renewing the tribute. So, the issue at the moment is between the owner of the claim and those who wish to mine to enter into a valid tribute agreement.
Thank you Mr. Speaker.
ISSUANCE OF A TRIBUTE AGREEMENT TO YOUTHS OF
SILOBELA AT MALGREEN MINE
- HON. M. M. MPOFU asked the Minister of Mines and
Mining Development to explain why issuing of a tribute agreement to youths of Silobela at Malgreen Mine has not yet been done given the fact that the mine ceased operations 15 years ago.
THE MINISTER OF MINES AND MINING
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHITANDO): Currently, the youths are
operating under a registered cooperative called Silobela Youth in Mining and have engaged the owners of Malgreen Mine. In previous engagement between the stakeholders, the issue of funding to run the mine was raised and I am happy to say that there has been interface between the Ministry and the cooperative to try and facilitate funding to ensure that operations resume.
HON. M. M. MPOFU: I am not happy with the answer because
currently there are operations which are still happening at the mine. I want to know the Ministry’s position since the mine was opened because there are some people who are pumping water currently there. HON. CHITANDO: Mr. Speaker Sir, like I indicated, there was a tribute agreement between owners of the mining title and those who
were operating it. That tribute agreement expired in October 2017. I will have to check as to who is operating. At the moment, the registered owner of the mining title has the legal right to continue mining even if the tribute agreement has expired. I presume that the registered owner is the one who is operating it.
Previously, those who were operating on the tribute there are no longer legally entitled to operate on the premises. I can only presume that whoever is doing operations there – it is either the registered owner of the mining title or someone who is doing it with the consent of the registered owner of the mining title.
RBZ LOAN BENEFICIARIES IN KADOMA CENTRAL
CONSTITUENCY
- HON. PHIRI asked the Minister of Mines and Mining Development to inform the House the RBZ loan beneficiaries in
Kadoma, especially Kadoma Central Constituency.
THE MINISTER OF MINES AND MINING
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHITANDO): The administration and
allocation of RBZ fund for the development of gold is done by the Reserve Bank in conjunction with Fidelity Printers and Refiners also at the same time under the conduit of the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development. My Ministry is at the moment in liaison with the relevant counterparts whom I have mentioned to get the necessary information which I will furnish next time in the House. I thank you.
BULAWAYO-HARARE ROAD TRAFFIC LIGHTS
- HON. PHIRI asked the Minister of Transport and
Infrastructural Development when the Ministry is going to erect traffic lights on the Bulawayo / Harare road at the ever busy Kadoma Waverly Bus Stop a black spot where several fatal accidents have taken place in the last 3 years.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Mr Speaker Sir, indeed Kadoma Waverly Bus Stop is a black spot where several fatal accidents have taken place in recent years. My Ministry’s Department of Roads and City of Kadoma are working towards regularising activities around this busy bus stop by improving it. My
Ministry and the City of Kadoma are also looking into the feasibility of erecting traffic lights at the said intersection. We intend to come up with designs and a budget followed by implementation next year.
ALLOCATION OF FUNDS TO KADOMA CITY COUNCIL
FOR THE REPAIR OF ROADS
- HON. PHIRI asked the Minister of Transport and
Infrastructural Development to inform the House
- How much has been allocated to Kadoma City Council by
the Road Funds to repair the roads that were destroyed by rains.
- How much money was used to repair Cameron Square in the City Centre and why the project has taken so long to be completed.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
Mr Speaker Sir, Kadoma City Council were allocated $850 000 by the Road Fund to repair the roads that were destroyed by rains.
Mr Speaker Sir, $100 000 has been used to repair Cameron Square in the City Centre so far and the works are 99% complete. The delay in completing the works is due to a shifted attention following the damaging of roads by last season’s heavy rains.
APPOINTMENT OF CHIEF MSAMPAKARUMA OF KARIBA 23. HON. MACKENZIE asked the Minister of Local
Government, Public Works and National Housing to indicate when the new Chief Msampakaruma of Kariba will be appointed considering that three years have passed since the last chief died.
THE MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT, PUBLIC WORKS AND NATIONAL HOUSING (HON. J. MOYO): Thank
you Mr. Speaker. I would also like to thank Hon. Mackenzie for the question regarding the chieftainship of Msapakaruma of Kariba. At the same time, let me inform this august House that Section 4 (1) of the
Traditional Leaders Act (Chapter 29:17) states, “In the event of the office of the chief becoming vacant through the death of the chief, the President may appoint an acting chief to preside in his stead for such a period or periods as the President may fix”.
As policy, the Ministry sets the Caretaker chiefs’ term in office at two years from the date of the acting chief’s appointment. The office of Chief Msapakaruma fell vacant on 17th August, 2015, following the death of the then Chief Chacharika Chigwededza who was the substantive Chief. His Excellency, the President, in terms of Section 4 (1) of the Traditional Leaders Act approved the appointment of
Chacharika Muchaneta as acting Chief Msapakaruma with effect from 24 June, 2016. It is therefore, clear that 1 year 7 months have passed since the appointment of an acting Chief Msapakaruma.
It is therefore after the lapse of a two year acting period for
Caretaker Chief Msapakaruma that is in June 2018 that the Provincial Administrator for Mashonaland West Province will initiate the selection of a substantive chief with the Msapakaruma clan in the earliest convenient time. Thank you.
HON. MANDIPAKA: Hon. Speaker, I would like to find out from the Minister, given the response that from areas where we come from, we have certain chiefs that have been in acting capacity for more than six or so years. How does that come about because they are in acting capacity, they do not give authentic decisions and it is a problem to the populace?
HON. J. MOYO: Mr. Speaker Sir, I can confirm to the Hon.
Member and to this House that there are a lot of acting chiefs who have gone beyond the two year term that we have fixed. There are various reasons why it is happening like that. In some instances, the clan that is supposed to choose a new chief will be quarrelling and not coming up with a chief. Coming up with a chief that is acceptable to the whole clan, that lengthens the years of the acting chief. In some cases, there are litigations that are appearing in the courts and as long as those litigations are going on, we cannot select a chief and recommend to the President. Those are the two major reasons why acting chiefs are now taking longer than the two year term that has been set as policy. Thank you.
HON. GABBUZA: From the Minister’s response, he has already
set in motion the office of The Provincial Administrator, Mashonaland
West to start the selection or the process of selection of Chief Msapakaruma. I thought the new dispensation calls upon the Chiefs’
Council to be in charge of such a process instead of the office of the Provincial Administrator. Can the Minister clarify on that?
HON. J. MOYO: Thank you Mr. Speaker. The Hon. Member is
aware that the Constitution requires that the Provincial Assemblies of
Chiefs do that work of selection but however, the secretariat to that
Provincial Assembly of Chiefs is the office of the Provincial
Administrator just as the secretariat of the National Council of Chiefs is the office of the Director for Chieftainship affairs which is in the
Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing.
HON. MLISWA: Minister, we have a situation where the chiefs as a result of the Land Reform has gone as far as appointing village heads who are not even recognised by the DA’s office and the Government. They continue to have traditional courts charging people goats, cattle and so forth. They do not have a badge to say that they are village heads and I am actually quite worried that what they are doing is illegal, it is fraud. Most people have asked their authenticity of being village heads and no one can say anything about that. What is your response to such village heads who are being appointed by chiefs in commercial farming areas and are not recognised by the Government?
HON. J. MOYO: There is a process of making sure that some chiefs are encamped in commercial farming areas that have been resettled or that still have old farmers, especially the black farmers. Once that has happened, a chief who has been authorised now to oversee an area which was formerly a commercial farming or is still a farming area, once that has happened that chief has a right in terms of the act to start appointing village heads.
However, if there is any chief that has appointed and has not been authorized to appoint village heads in the commercial farming areas, let the Hon. Member give us the name so that we can look at it.
COMPENSATION OF HOME SEEKERS IN KADOMA FOR
FAILING TO GET HOUSES AFTER CONTRIBUTIONS TO
THE PAY FOR YOUR HOUSE SCHEME
- HON. PHIRI asked the Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing what measures are being taken to compensate home seekers who did not get their houses after paying in full for Pay For Your House Scheme in Kadoma; e.g. Mr. V. Chikoto No. 052 726 R04 who paid ZW$10 200.00.
THE MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT, PUBLIC
WORKS AND NATIONAL HOUSING (HON. J. MOYO): Mr.
Speaker Sir, let me assure this House that this matter is being looked at because when the scheme was started, there were 8 000 people who contributed towards the said scheme and 4 500 benefited and that left a balance of those who did not benefit. The scheme started in 1995/6 based on a matching basis, where each dollar contributed by a member would be matched by a dollar from the Government with the funding coming from Treasury.
However around 2004/5, Government withdrew its matching dollar and the Ministry had to work only with Members contributions. The economic situation that occurred after that, around that time made matters worse in terms of the actual delivery of housing units and the scheme was then suspended in 2007 when the economic changes got worse. Mr. Speaker Sir, when the country then dollarised those who had not benefited started approaching the Ministry asking for their stands and houses. The Ministry of Finance was approached to give guidance on the matter since some were even asking for reimbursements.
Needless to say, to date we are still to be furnished with a conversion rate. Faced with this scenario, the Ministry then adopted a position of giving the said beneficiaries first offer or refusal preference in any new projects of their choice that were being initiated or implemented by Government. However, they were expected to meet some of the costs of the stand or house in the new scheme that they would have chosen but just like any other beneficiary of the said scheme, until such a time when Government reaches a position on how the Zimbabwe dollar funds will be treated. We are also in discussion with the Mr. Choto whose Identity Number is on the Order Paper in order to see how we can accommodate his situation. I thank you Mr.
Speaker.
WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS TO QUESTIONS WITH NOTICE
PROMOTION OF VALUE ADDITION AND BENEFICIATION OF
MINERALS
- HON. NDUNA asked the Minister of Mines and Mining Development to:
- Inform the House what the Ministry was doing to incentivise and promote value addition and beneficiation of minerals as a way of ensuring that Zimbabwe gets optimal value from its mineral resources as envisaged in ZIM ASSET;
- inform the House whether the Ministry instituted any monitoring mechanisms to ensure that platinum producers migrate to base metal refining by December, 2017; and to further state the progress made to date in compliance to this policy.
THE MINISTER OF MINES AND MINING
DEVELOPMENT (HON. CHITANDO): The issue of mineral
beneficiation and value addition stands at the heart of my Ministry, Ministry of Mines and Mining Development. As a way of promoting local beneficiation and value addition, Government through my Ministry, set aside quotas for diamonds (at least 10% of local production) and granite (at least 10% of local production). Engagement with producers is still underway with all the key members.
Level of Beneficiation | Export Tax on Un-beneficiated Platinum (%) |
PGM Concentrate | 5 |
White Matte | 2.5 |
PGM and Base Metal | 1 |
Precious Metal Refinery | 0 |
Furthermore, Government through my Ministry opened up a chrome ore export window in 2015 as a way of capacitating small scale miners and existing chrome smelting facilities to expand their smelting capabilities and promote establishment of new smelting facilities. Companies with potential to set up chrome smelting facilities were prioritised in allocation of chrome claims which were negotiated and ceded back to Government. In this respect, I am pleased to report that so far 12 companies have set up smelters while the Ministry is processing applications for three other potential smelters.
Also, a number of projects are being worked on under the
Government’s Rapid Results Initiatives (RRI), to come up with incentives and promote local beneficiation of minerals in Zimbabwe. The quick wins being worked on include granite, platinum Group Minerals (PGMs) and chrome. The Ministry is in discussion with the platinum producers individually and collectively to do value addition.
Thank you.
REMARKING OF ROADS COUNTRY-WIDE
- HON. CHIDHAKWA asked the Minister of Transport and
Infrastructural Development to inform the House what plans are in place to remark roads in the country considering that some markings are no longer visible especially at night.
THE MINISTER OF TRANSPORT AND
INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT (HON. DR. GUMBO):
The Ministry is carrying out the Emergency Road Rehabilitation Programme which is addressing the state of the roads countrywide. Provisions for road markings have been included in the programme as it is one of the safety features that we prioritise in road maintenance. For example, Enterprise Road has been recently resealed and carriageway markings have been done. Further to that, the Department of Roads acquired a state of the art road marking machine which is currently being used in Mashonaland West Province along Darwendale Road. Plans are underway to procure two more road marking machines to cover other provinces.
APPOINTMENT OF INTERVIEWING PANEL FOR THE TOWN CLERKS AND HEADS OF COUNCIL DEPARTMENTS
- HON MASUKU asked the Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing to inform the House who appoints the panel that interviews Town Clerks and Heads of Council Departments.
THE MINISTER OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT, PUBLIC
WORKS AND NATIONAL HOUSING (HON. MOYO): Mr.
Speaker Sir, the employment procedure is as follows:
- The employment of Town Clerks and Secretaries
- A Town Clerk/Secretary post should be filled within three months of the vacancy arising.
- The advert for the post must comply with the minimum qualifications set out by the Ministry.
- Where the acting Town Clerk/Secretary or the Head of Human Resources intends to apply for the job, the applications should be received at a separate address and recorded independently.
- The short listing process should be undertaken independently by a private consultant or a panel of independent persons.
- The interview for the Town Clerk/Secretary should be carried out by a panel of professionals with the Chairperson of the Committee responsible for Human Resources matters as a member.
- The interview panel would make recommendations to Council.
- The Council will make recommendations to the Local
Government Board.
- Upon receipt of the approval from the Local Government Board, the candidate will be engaged on a performance contract basis with conditions of service as set out in the Council conditions of service and rationalized salary directive.
- Employment of a Head of Department or Deputy Head of
Department
- A head of department or deputy post should be filled within three months of the vacancy arising and with the concurrence of the Minister.
- The advert for the post must comply with the minimum qualifications set out by the Ministry.
- The short listing process should be undertaken by the Town Clerk/Secretary.
- The interview for the head of department or deputy should be carried out by a panel of professionals chaired by the Town Clerk/Secretary and with the Chairperson or the committee responsible for human resources matters as a member.
- The interview panel would make recommendations to council.
- The council will make recommendations to the Local
Government Board.
- Upon receipt of the approval from the Local Government Board the candidate will be engaged on a performance contract basis with conditions of service as set out in the council conditions of service.
HON. MLISWA: On a point of order Hon. Speaker Sir, according to Section 56 (1) of the Standing Order Rules, “Pursuant to the provisions of Section 137 of the Constitution, the quorum of the House must be (70) Members” and as such it is important that Members of Parliament respect their duties and attend Parliament because this is a waste of taxpayers’ money. We cannot continue working like this with this economic and political order that is there. This is a betrayal to His Excellency who is working tirelessly to ensure that this country moves forward.
I am very disappointed that the ruling party is the biggest culprit in undermining the President in this new economic order. Therefore, Mr Speaker Sir, it is important that we play to the rules of the game and as Members of Parliament, we become serious when comes to the discharge of our duty so that we turnaround the fortunes of the people of Zimbabwe and support His Excellency Cde. Emmerson. Dambudzo
Mnangagwa. This is sad and it is a betrayal to the founding principles or the struggle and the welfare of the people of Zimbabwe. Thank you.
Bells rung.
A Notice having been taken that there being fewer than 70
Members, the bells were rung for Seven Minutes and a Quorum still not
being present, THE TEMPORARY SPEAKER (HON. MUTOMBA)
adjourned the House without question put at Five Minutes to Five
O’clock p.m. pursuant to provisions of Standing Order Number 56.
NOTE: The following Members were present when the House
adjourned:
Bhebhe A; Chibagu G.; Chigudu M.; Chikuni E; Chikwinya N; Chitindi
C; Dziva T. M; Gabbuza J.G.; Gangarahwe G.; Gezi T; Gonese I.T;
Guzah N. K.; Holder J; Kadungure D. A; Kazembe K; Khanye N; Khumalo M; Machingauta C; Mackenzie I; Mahoka S. ; Majome F. J;
Mandipaka O; Marumahoko R; Mataruse P. ; Mavima P; Mawere V. M.;
Misihairambwi-Mushonga P.; Mlambo W. B. J; Mliswa P. T. ; Moyo
- ; Mpofu S. ; Muchenje F. ; Mudambo T. ; Mudarikwa S. ; Mudyiwa
- ; Mukwangwariwa F. G. ; Mukwena R. ; Munengami F. ;
Mutomba W; Ndhlovu Annastancia; Ndlovu N; Nkomo Mail;
Paradza K; Phiri F. P.; Rungani A; Saruwaka T. J. L.; Shongedza E;
Sipani-Hungwe O.; Toffa J; Tshuma J.; Uta K.; Zhou P.; Zhou T. ;
Ziyambi Z.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Tuesday, 9th January, 2018
The National Assembly met at a Quarter-past Two o’clock p.m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. SPEAKER in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE HON. SPEAKER
APPOINTMENTS TO PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have this announcement on the deployment of the following Members of Parliament into various Committees.
Hon. Muponora will go into Transport and Infrastructural
Development and Lands and Agriculture Rural Resettlement
Committees.
Hon. Eunice Nomthandazo S. Moyo will go to Environment, Water, Climate and Hospitality Industry as well as Foreign Affairs, Industry and Enterprise Development.
Hon. B. Chikwama goes to Environment, Water, Climate and
Hospitality Industry and Health and Child Care.
Hon. Mbwembwe goes to Environment, Water, Climate and Hospitality Industry and Foreign Affairs.
Hon. G. Gandawa will serve on the Committee on Higher Education.
Hon. Anastancia Ndlovu will serve on the Committee on Environment, Water, Climate and Hospitability Industry as well as Media, Information, ICT and Cyber Security.
Hon. Madanha goes to Local Government, Public Works and
National Housing as well as Transport and Infrastructural Development.
Hon. Kanengoni-Malinga goes to Foreign Affairs and Women and Youth Affairs.
Hon. Chikwinya goes to Mines and Energy as well as Women and Youth Affairs.
Hon. Tongofa goes to Health and Child Welfare and Transport and Infrastructural Development.
Hon. Nyere goes to Environment, Water, Climate and Hospitality
Industry.
Hon. Dr. Mombeshora goes to Lands, Agriculture and Rural
Resettlement and Health and Child Welfare.
THE HON SPEAKER: I would like to welcome the Hon. Vice
President Rtd. Gen. Dr. Chiwenga – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.]- I would want the Acting Clerk of Parliament, to favor the Vice President and I believe our new Minister of Foreign Affairs, with our Standing Rules and Orders so that they acclimatise themselves with the rules and orders of our Parliamentary proceedings.
HON. DR. SHUMBA: Hon. Speaker, it is a point of privilege. Hon. Speaker, you will recall that some time last year, accusations were made in this House against me that bordered on accusations on the Clerk of Parliament and yourself, Mr. Speaker, relating to some corrupt activities by Hon. Mliswa. May the Hon. Speaker favor this House with the progress that he has made or the reports that has since been made to the Hon. Speaker regarding those accusations as they are fundamental.
If false, Hon. Speaker, I move that you resolve that some punitive measures visit the Member concerned – [HON. ZWIZWAI: Ahh ndezve
G40 izvo, gara pasi.]-
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order! Hon. Zwizwai! Hon. Dr. Shumba, I want to advise you that Hon. Mliswa approached me yesterday. He was going to pronounce himself on that matter but unfortunately he has gone to Gweru for a funeral. That situation should be rectified amicably.
HON. DR. SHUMBA: If you recall Mr. Speaker – [HON.
MEMBERS: Inaudible interjection.] - when those… THE HON. SPEAKER: Order! I have ruled.
HON. DR. SHUMBA: Mr. Speaker, I was denied an opportunity
to respond by you, Mr. Speaker. If there is a resolve on the matter, that issue must be pronounced in this House – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible
interjections.]-
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Dr. Shumba, I thought you
understood me. I said Hon. Mliswa will pronounce himself on the
matter when he is back in this House. I think the matter will be resolved amicably.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. MATUKE: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 1 to 4 on today’s Order Paper be stood over until we dispose the rest of the Orders of the Day.
HON. RUNGANI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
APPOINTMENT OF AUDITOR GENERAL
The Deputy Speaker of Finance and Economic Planning Hon.
Mukupe having stood up to move the motion. - [HON. MEMBERS:
Inaudible interjections.]-
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order Hon. Members, the Hon. Deputy
Minister cannot take precedence over the Hon. Minister who is here.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
PLANNING (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. Speaker Sir, I had taken the
pleasure to delegate. I move that;
WHEREAS, Section 310 (1) (Appointment of Auditor General) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe provides that an Auditor General is appointed by the President with the approval of Parliament;
AND WHEREAS, Section 340 (1) (a) (‘Appointments’) of the
Constitution provides the President with the power to reappoint a Public
Office holder into such office;
NOW THEREFORE, in terms of the aforementioned Section 310
(1) of the Constitution, this House resolves and approves that Mrs.
Mildred Chiri be appointed Auditor-General of the Republic of Zimbabwe for a further term in office effective from the 25th of
February, 2017.
In terms of Section 310 (1) of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, the Auditor General of the Republic of Zimbabwe must be appointed by the President with the concurrence or approval of Parliament.
It is on this basis that I rise in this august House to move that the Hon. Members of Parliament approve the reappointment of the Auditor
General, Mrs Mildred Chiri for a further term in office effective from the
25th February 2017, which reappointment will be carried out by His
Excellency the President in terms of Section 340 (1) (a) of the Constitution.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the Hon. Members of this august House are already familiar with the sterling work Mrs. Chiri has carried out to date and throughout her incumbency, but it is for the sake of completeness that I shall proceed to highlight a few of her qualifications and achievements that support her reappointment into office.
Educational Qualifications and Experience
Mrs. Chiri obtained a Bachelor of Accountancy Degree from the
University of Zimbabwe in 1983 and thereafter undertook a course on Public Finance and Accountancy also from the University of Zimbabwe in 1985.
She then qualified as an articled clerk after enrolling with the Institute of Chartered Accountants where she completed serving articles over the period 1999 to 2002.
In 2015, she obtained her Association of Chartered Certified
Accountants (ACCA) and became a certified Public Accountant in
Zimbabwe (CPA(Z)). She is currently pursuing a Masters in Business Administration with the National University of Science and Technology (NUST).
In 2004, Mrs. Chiri was appointed Comptroller and Auditor General as it was known then, whereupon through her leadership, that office was able to bring up to date the audits of annual financial statements of Government which were in arrears by as much as 5 years at that time – a considerable achievement in its own right.
Mr. Speaker Sir, to this very day, the Auditor General’s office remains up to date with its annual audit reports of Central Government financial statements and parastatals. Hon. Members will recall that the reports for the December 2016 financial year end were tabled in Parliament on June 21, 2017 beating the deadline of June 30.
Mrs. Chiri was pivotal in the development of the Audit Office Act [Chapter 22:18] passed in Parliament in 2011, which saw that department restructure and this led to improved operational efficiencies. Recently, she has developed a three year strategic plan for the office spanning from 2016 – 2018 which aims at strengthening the office in particular areas which are;
- Enhancement of the independence of the institution through appropriate modifications of the legal framework,
- Organisational structure and institutional governance,
- Development of human resources, audit standards and methodology and
- Communication strategies and stakeholder management.
Mr. Speaker Sir, the areas I have just referred to are domains or indicators set by the African organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions
(AFROSAI-E), an association of English speaking Auditor Generals’ Offices also known as Supreme Audit Institutions (SAIs) against which all 23 countries in that subgroup are measured against.
Additionally, Mrs. Chiri has spearheaded the professionalisation of the Audit Office by engaging consultants to conduct training of articled clerks since 2010 and there are now three fully qualified chartered accountants in that department.
Furthermore, under her leadership, 45 members of staff have registered with the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants or
“ACCA” and the office is assisting with tuition fees for their studies.
Several of them are now fully qualified members of that institution. The Audit office is also sponsoring its staff to study at the Certified Institute of Public Accountants.
As well as being the immediate past Vice President of the African
Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (AFROSAI-E) sub-regional grouping, Mrs. Chiri is the past chair of the Southern African
Development Community (SADC) Board of Auditors comprising of Zimbabwe, Botswana and Malawi. Her office headed the audit function for three years, whereupon she handed over to the succeeding Board of Auditors in February 2010.
Mrs. Chiri is a board member (representing developing countries) of International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions
Development Initiative (IDI), a training arm of all Auditors-Generals’ offices based in Oslo, Norway.
Conclusion
Mr. Speaker Sir, in conclusion, it is clear that Mrs. Chiri has been a pivotal figure in the public sector of Zimbabwe and an effective Auditor General to date. To this end, I therefore move that this august House approves her reappointment as Auditor General for a further term in office, effective from the 25th February, 2017. I so submit Mr. Speaker
Sir.
HON. HOLDER: Thank you Mr. Speaker, - [HON. MEMBERS:
Inaudible interjections.]-
THE HON. SPEAKER: Sorry Hon. Holder. In terms of
precedence, can we first have the Chairperson of the Public Accounts
Committee. – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] -
HON. MPARIWA: Thank you Hon. Speaker. First and foremost, let me begin by wishing you a Happy New Year and all the Hon.
Members.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Thank you.
HON. MPARIWA: Hon. Speaker, I want to thank the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning Development for having considered and brought this motion to the House in terms of getting Madam Chiri back as the Auditor General for another term, simply because of the reasons that you already know. You know very well that whenever I stood up here in the last year presenting reports of unpacking the behaviour of institutions and Government departments, some Members would be heckling and not wanting me to be heard.
Madam Chiri has brought us pride as women, as a nation and one of the best public performers – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] - If we could have ten people like Madam Chiri in their offices of responsibilities, it will be a different and a better Zimbabwe for us all. Serving the nation in that capacity as Madam Chiri is a bit difficult and she has lost friends including relatives because some may not want to associate with her. When you unpack certain evils...
Hon. Adv. Chamisa having been on the phone.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Chamisa, can you please go outside and finish your call - [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.]- an you please oblige
HON. ADV. CHAMISA: I have cut the call Mr. Speaker.
HON. SPEAKER: Why did you do that, Mr. President? May the
Hon. Member please proceed?
HON. MPARIWA: Thank you Hon. Speaker. I was at the point where I was saying Madam Chiri has lost friends and relatives in terms of the business that she does in terms of unpacking evils that happen in different institutions. Nonetheless, she has stood fast. For the Public Accounts Committee to be effective as it has been which you have actually acknowledged that it is one of the best Committees; even in SADC, we have proved beyond reasonable doubt that this is one of the best Committees in the SADC region. SADCOPAC can reveal that the Zimbabwean Public Accounts Committee is a Committee to work with in terms of copying culture.
In Shona they say, whatever is good chinokopewa but chakashata hachikopewe. People have begun to realise that there is something good...
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Member, that is not Shona.
HON. MPARIWA: Okay Hon. Speaker. I have been given some
words. My Shona is very bad...
THE HON. SPEAKER: Stick to one language.
HON. MPARIWA: Ndati zvinonzi chakanaka chinokopewa, chakashata hachikopewe. *What I am saying is, you have to copy what is good and also follow what is good and whenever somebody is doing something good, also follow that. But if somebody is doing something bad, please let it go.* Handisati ndapedza.
Hon. Chinotimba is one of those Members Hon. Speaker, who when I would be tabling reports of the Public Accounts, he would start attacking me verbally and I would say this is not a partisan document; it is a document of the Public Accounts Committee, everyone included in that particular Committee. I am alarmed that he is now realises that he has to align himself with the Public Accounts Committee and also second this motion by the Hon. Minister. We must clap hands for him.
I want to believe that for us as Parliament and for us as a nation, whenever a report has been brought by a Parliamentary Portfolio Committee and has facts where we can derive information from, we must acknowledge and align ourselves with that particular report. I stand here as a proud Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee because we have deliberated on reports that Madam Chiri will have provided information. Without the work that Madam Chiri does in the Ministry, we would not be performing the way we have done. But Hon. Speaker, I want to thank the Minister for his consideration and I want to thank the Members because even when we made noise last year about reappointing Madam Chiri, it was unanimous from all the Members to say we need her to be given another chance.
There is no way you can replace somebody who is performing well and get someone, a stranger that you have not known, but those that can be associated with failure. I want to thank and believe that come this 2018, Madam Chiri will be able to bring us to line in terms of getting the reports of the 2017, because as you may know Hon. Speaker, with 2016 accounts which we appreciate, others have failed to take us through in terms of having the reports ready for tabling in Parliament. With those remarks, I would want to second the Minister in terms of the notion to give Madam Chiri another term of office. Thank you.
HON. HOLDER: Thank you Mr. Speaker for giving me this opportunity to contribute to this debate. Before I start, allow me to congratulate the Vice President of Zimbabwe, Hon. Nyikadzino, Constantino Chiwenga for restoring legacy in this country. I would like to also thank the Hon. Minister for bringing forward this issue.
Remember, all our debates in Parliament come from the Auditor
General’s reports. Mr. Speaker, you are so passionate with the Auditor General’s reports that come here.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order, some of the debates, not all
the debates.
HON. HOLDER: Thank you Mr. Speaker for your correction but we need to give gratitude where things are good. When Mike Ndudzo’s name and his track record appeared here - Mr. Speaker, you remember I contributed towards that. I am actually excited because the Hon. Minister has restored legacy in that department because you can now see that the lady knew what she was doing. Giving her a further term is nothing better than justice, to prove and make sure that everything goes back on track. Mr. Speaker, I just want to support Madam Chiri to get back into this position. I thank you.
HON. ZINDI: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I will also take this opportunity to welcome and congratulate the Vice President, Hon. Constantino Chiwenga in the House before I get on to make my remarks known in as far as Madam Chiri is concerned.
Mr. Speaker, I am an advocate for women’s empowerment in leadership and decision making. Even my thesis for my Masters’ Degree was based on that. I need to commend Madam Chiri for having demonstrated that women are able to do it and they can do it if given the opportunity. – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] –
Women are a rare species in terms of leadership and decision making positions the world over - but where you would have found a woman appointed and given that position; women work hard. Women work hard in order to demonstrate that they can do it, whereas if it is a man given that responsibility, the society because of its nature which is patriarchal, it is taken for granted, ‘it is for us men’, period and nobody scruitnises what that man will be doing in that position, hence I need to congratulate Madam Chiri for her re-appointment. I think it was agreed across the political divide in this House that Madam Chiri should retain her position and I am glad. The whole House is glad that Madam Chiri has been re-appointed.
We know that women make 52% of the total population of this country but we a have few women in decision and leadership positions, why, perhaps it is the nature of our society that is patriarchal. If you think of a leader; if you think of any position, always, you think of men other than thinking of women. Therefore, to Madam Chiri, I must say to her, she has made us proud as Zimbabwean women. – [HON.
MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – I hope she is going to excel even better than what she has been doing in the past few years since her re-appointment as from now onwards. I thank you.
HON. DR. SHUMBA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. Firstly, I would like to identify with the accolades that the Hon. Minister enunciated regarding Mrs Chiri. Parliament is clear that we have on numerous occasions introspected over the number of audit reports that have been well researched by Mrs Chiri’s department and it is on that basis that those accolades about her qualifications and experience are befitting.
Mr. Speaker, Mrs Chiri is not only the best person for this job because she is a woman; she is the best person on this job because she is able – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – She has continued to deliver and has provided impetuous to this country in terms of issues regarding corporate governance. My issue is Hon. Minister, through you Mr. Speaker, to what extent are we going to be utilising those capabilities that have been driven by her department in ensuring that her reports inform Government policy? It is critical that she just does not churn out audit reports that we commend; to what extent are they measurably being implemented in this country?
Mrs Chiri has on more than one occasions exposed the delinquencies that have existed in the Executive in respect to corporate governance, corruption and to issues that the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning is facing challenges in dealing with National Budget, especially the huge national deficit; to what extent are we committed to not only pass those accolades to this most able professional woman, to import those findings into Government policy?
Mr. Speaker, it is important that as we celebrate her reappointment, we remind the Minister that we want consistency in the decisions by the Executive, especially in respect to the re-appointment of professionals into their respective positions. So, I would like to commend the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning that he has repudiated from an earlier position and has pushed forward for this professional lady. Let us all work with this lady; let us work for Zimbabwe; let us unlock value. Thank you.
HON. GABBUZA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. Let me say, I am sure as Parliament we have completely no objection and we have always not had an objection. If we recall from our last debate when she was about to lose her position, we were all against her losing the position. So, as Parliament I do not see us objecting at all. It is actually a welcome relief.
This is a woman that has changed the history of this Parliament, particularly with regards to the way public finance management is reported to Parliament. Traditionally in this Parliament, reports of the
Auditor General would come three or four years late – [HON.
MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – This is a woman who changed that discourse, we were now able to - at the latest, we were able to read her reports a year later. In most cases she had become up to date with her reports, which was never known in this Parliament. This is a woman who was able to give very bold reports critical of ministries and ministers, which was never heard of in the history of this Parliament, even in the previous Audit Reports. So, her reports were very informative and brave.
Perhaps what I need to find out from the Minister Mr. Speaker, the last time the Minister presented the issue of the Auditor General’s reappointment or renewal of her contract, there were two issues that he raised; he told us vividly in this House that he had persuaded Mildred
Chiri twice to take up the post but she was not interested. Initially she had made indications that she would think about it but on a later note, she clearly did not want to take up the post. I would be very interested to know from the Minister what exactly happened that suddenly, she is interested? – [AN HON. MEMBER: Aiwaa.] – this is very important Mr. Speaker because we do not want a repetition of such underground underhands that frighten people that we think are very professional. We need to know.
Secondly, there was an issue where the Minister indicated clearly that he was going to reassign her within the Ministry to an internal audit office, what has happened to that, was she better qualified for this job than the other? So, those are some of the anomalies that we need to understand because this is a public job, we need to know what her fate is so that we guard against it. I thank you Mr. Speaker.
HON. MAJOME: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I want to add my voice in support and indeed commendation of the Hon. Minister of Finance and Economic Planning in bowing to this august House that constitutes the voice of the people of Zimbabwe. In the very recent, dramatic and historic events in our country that have reshaped our Government, there was a clause that resonated consistently that ‘the voice of the people is the voice of God.’ I am indeed encouraged that the Hon. Minister has that wisdom to recognise that the representatives of the people are by implication the voice of God and it is an honour for this august House to carry that voice. I want to believe that the Hon. Minister will be blessed with long and fruitful life for heeding the voice of God through the representatives of the people who are echoing the voice of God. Thank you Hon. Minister and I of course support the motion wholeheartedly.
I want to congratulate two women in this Parliament, one of them is Madam Chiri, as said by Hon. Zindi, for persisting in her service of the nation under clearly difficult circumstances. It is my hope that the Hon. Minister will ensure that her office is sufficiently funded for her to enjoy the top most security of person and office that there can be because it is not a joke to bravely issue reports that rattle a lot of criminals around certain people as the lingo also goes – [Laughter.] – Secondly, I want to commend our fellow Hon. Member, Hon. Mpariwa, the Chairperson of the Parliamentary Public Accounts for continuing with her Committee Members, they do us proud as Hon. Members of Parliament for persisting and speaking what is called the truth to power.
However, I intend to make two points only regarding the appointment of Hon. Madam Chiri. I am glad the Hon. Minister is here. The first one is that I do hope the Hon. Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, in keeping with his very positive and commendable attitude of doing right by the voice of God, which comes through the voice of the people; I do hope that in this budget that we are currently considering, the Hon. Minister now does the constitutional requirement that requires that the Office of the Auditor General is funded directly and independently as the Constitution requires, alongside all the other independent commissions. I want to commend him; I am hoping he does so all the time, heeding the concerns and recommendations of the august House. He did very well about two years ago to delink the funding – the allocations, the votes of independent commissions including the traditional leaders and independent commissions like the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, Human Rights Commission as well as the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission and the Media Commission from the various ministries that were being wrongly called line ministries.
The Auditor General’s Office is required also by the Constitution and the Hon. Minister will bear with me because not only is he a lawyer like myself, but he was also one of the leading crafters of the
Constitution. You will remember that the Auditor General’s Office was also given a status that is similar to that of independent commissions that receive direct allocations.
Secondly and lastly Mr. Speaker Sir, I want to also implore the
Hon. Minister – it is a pity that the Hon. Ministers of Justice and of Home Affairs are not here. I want to echo what my colleagues have said like Hon. Holder and other Hon. Members that the frustration of this august House is that the brilliant work that is indeed executed by the Public Accounts Committee led by Hon. Mpariwa, continues to unearth the shocking extents of criminal activity. While we are in the same spirit of dealing with criminals who are around certain people, may we continue in this case to have the Hon. Minister of Home Affairs – [Laughter.] – Hon. Minister of Justice and the Prosecutor General, to not wait to be begged and asked to go and investigate very clear evidence and allegations of pilfering from the poor Zimbabwean tax payer that Hon. Madam Chiri has tirelessly and unearthed time and time again and also recommendations that the Public Accounts Committee has made.
This august House has echoed that heads must roll, handcuffs must rattle and the remand courts there must have people in them. Can we finally see from the Minister of Home Affairs who incidentally has not, in this current term of Parliament, ever presented a report from the Commissioner General as required by the Police Act, reporting activities and investigations of the police. We have not seen that yet. Can we now see in this hopefully new dispensation see criminals around parastatals and other places – [Laughter.] - and those criminals around the reports and recommendations of the Public Accounts Committee - can we now see handcuffs rattling around them and may we now see them trooping to the various remand prisons in the country. Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
*HON. CHINOTIMBA: Mr. Speaker Sir, I raised up in order to thank the reappointment of Mrs. Chasi – [HON. MEMBERS: Haa aaah.] – of Mrs. Chiri. Yesterday…
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. She is Mrs. Chiri. Thank you.
*HON. CHINOTIMBA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. Just yesterday Mr. Speaker, you were talking of rubber-stamping issues as Parliamentarians, when anything is brought before Parliament, we just accept. This time you have realised the importance of Parliament because Parliament sternly refused the appointment of the Auditor
General previously chosen. I am sure now that you have witnessed that Parliament is not here to rubber stamp. I also think that all Ministers should also follow suit on the appointment of board members. That is where another issue is. We cannot deny Ministers from appointing board members but you realise that when they appoint, there is nepotism. They can appoint their nephews, friends and relatives. In the end, corruption takes place. When Mrs. Chiri comes in to expose such corruption, we now want to protect each other and want to remove here because she has exposed the ills. We want to thank the General who realised that there was a lot of corruption and many thieves.
We do not want these thugs in the new Zimbabwe. We do not want thugs as board members in the boards. This should be a reflection in this country that when people speak, they should listen to the voice of the people because the Bible says, you go to Heaven because of someone else. If people say this is a good person, that person can go to Heaven. If people are debating in this House, exposing the negatives about certain individuals, the Executive should listen to us. I just stood up to say, congratulations Mr. Speaker on this issue and to show that we do not rubber stamp. In this case, we refused and we did not rubber stamp. We want things to be done through you. They should be brought to this Parliament. If they are not able to bring them here, they should brief us on what is taking place and we will highlight the challenges. Such procedures will help us develop. It will guard against situations whereby girl friends, friends or even relatives end up being in control.
I always say, we did not go to war for a few to benefit but for the populace of Zimbabwe to benefit. What happens is, we are blamed as war veterans and we ask ourselves, why did we suffer? This is not good. I am saying that the appointment of Mrs. Chiri, I believe the whole country is happy with that appointment and I hope that will continue. I stood up to tell you that there is no rubber-stamping. That is what we are going to do, even when it comes to the Budget. We are going to state our position clearly. If it is not done, we will remain like that. I want to thank you Mr. Speaker Sir – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible
interjections.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order.
HON. CHASI: Thank you very much Mr. Speaker Sir. I want to start by thanking Hon. Chinotimba for his very kind words. Mr.
Speaker, I want to say that there is no doubt – [HON. MEMBERS: Asi also tanga watenda General vakakudzora. Handiti wakange wadzingwa.] – I also want to thank the General – [Laughter.] – [HON. MEMBERS: Iti Vice President kwete kungoti General.] – for the leadership that he provided during the operation. Mr. Speaker, there is no doubt that Mrs. Chiri is a highly qualified and very energetic person who is very capable of running the office to which she has been appointed.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Members, order. Hon. Members
at the back there, can you be attentive, including those three who are looking at the back, you were talking. Thank you.
HON. CHASI: Thank you Mr. Speaker. There is no doubt that the illustrious woman is highly qualified and very capable and that over the years, she has delivered very excellent quality of work. I must also take this opportunity to thank the Chairperson of the relevant
Committee, Hon. Mpariwa for the hard work that she has exhibited. Mr.
Speaker, I want to associate myself with the words that have been expressed by previous speakers. I want to add an extra point here, which is that this House and the entire country has let down the AuditorGeneral in that, although she has worked exceedingly well and very hard to unearth malpractices in Government departments, what has lacked is follow through on her recommendations. I want to suggest Mr. Speaker that there is no better time than now for this House to consider the composition of what I would term an execution committee or a committee by any other term that should follow through the recommendations or decisions by this Parliament. I think that is where the chain is breaking because all the reports that she has come up with, she has come up with recommendations but we lack a mechanism to follow up on those recommendations to ensure that the individuals that have acted improperly or committed criminal act, are prosecuted. That is my contribution Mr. Speaker. I thank you.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
PLANNING (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. Speaker Sir, I want to thank all Hon. Members who have made their contributions, all in support of reappointment of Mrs. Chiri. I associate myself fully with the accolades that have been poured in support of this reappointment. I want to say that when her term of office expired, I did not write to her, I called her to my office and had a two hour discussion, persuading her to accept a renewal, she refused in that meeting. I again phoned her, she insisted that she wanted a rest. It was only on that basis Mr. Speaker Sir, that I went to look for a replacement. I am happy that when I came to this House, the contributions of Members made it clear that they would want her to be reappointed. It was Hon. Members here who went to persuade her to accept the appointment, let us put the record straight, which I am grateful about. Clearly, I was very happy with her work. When I came in, I worked very well with the Hon. Chair of Public Accounts and we agreed that we needed to put our systems right in all the lime ministries and parastatals and that we should work together. I also worked very well with her and I was pleased with her work because she cleared all the arrear reports.
Last year, I presented the Public Accounts Report for 2016 in record time. So, I was clearly happy with her reports. I had no reason to want to replace her at all. So, when colleagues or Hon. Members here say or suggest that there was any need to side step her, those statements are wrong. I want to put the record straight. The Ministry and the Government was always eager to reappoint her and I am very happy that she is going to be reappointed, of course with the approval of this august Chamber.
Through our collaboration, I was able to get an Accountant General appointed, whom we poached from the private sector from one of the major accounting firms, who is now the Accountant-General. It is through the Accountant-General that even my responses to the Public Accounts Committee are also now up to date. We are in the process, Mr. Speaker Sir, of setting up an internal audit system which will be headed by someone in my Ministry. He or she will be in charge of all internal auditors in line Ministries so that a lot of what the Auditor- General reports about, we should know it before hand and if possible, try to prevent it. There is no point to wait until the hoarse has bolted.
It is always important to put in place systems that prevent or that help us to monitor and know what is taking place in the line Ministries, in parastatals, so that what is complained about, what this House has been complaining about, does not take place. I want to say that as we go forward, we should see less and less of negative reports from the Auditor-General.
So, I want to thank all the Hon. Members who have contributed. Hon. Mpariwa, let me take this opportunity, Madam, to congratulate you on your reappointment and I look forward to working closely with you. I want to thank Hon. Holder basically for suggesting that her reappointment restores legacy in the Auditor-General’s system. I want to thank Hon. Zindi for mentioning of course that Mrs. Chiri is a woman, but let me give you my philosophy, Mr. Speaker Sir. I appoint or recommend appointment first and foremost on merit. The woman consideration is a secondary matter, but when I am choosing merit, I do not discriminate, I do not even want to know the names. I want to appoint on the basis of merit. I hope that this is supported. We must never appoint people or women as women because they will do down the cause of women – [AN HON. MEMBER: Or men.]- Generally men
tend to get away with it. So, Mr. Speaker Sir, I am very clear that she is appointed on merit and I think all the accolades are testifying to her merit and to her capability in the performance of her duties.
Hon. Shumba, I agree, yes, there have been a lot of complaints about corruption and bad corporate governance. My own philosophy and my own approach is that we must work to set up systems that prevent these incidents of corruption or corporate governance from occurring. It is only through systems and not corsi factor when issues of theft or misappropriation have been done. People also know that those criminals who want to misappropriate, the first thing they do is to destroy systems because after the systems are destroyed, it is very difficult to know who the culprits or criminals are. So, I want to work very hard on setting up systems, not only in Central Government, but also in parastatals as well as in local authorities.
I am sure I have already given you the explanation of what happened in the process of suggesting her to be reappointed. Hon. Gabbuza, thank you for your support. Again, the explanation I have given, I am sure you will consider that satisfactory. Hon. Majome, all I can say is you used the words ‘bowing down to the voices of Hon.
Members’. If anyone bowed down, it was Mrs. Chiri who after the contribution made by Hon. Members made her change her mind – [AN HON. MEMBER: You bowed down.]- No, but you assisted me. You do not want to be supported.
Hon. Chinotimba, I think I have already explained and the issue is basically, the explanation I have given I think stands. Hon. Chasi, thank you very much for the suggestions that you made. What I think I need to emphasise here is, after the many reports here and I advised the Public Accounts Committee, I set up an Audit Committee, a committee in the
Accountant-General’s office which is dedicated to reading the auditor’s reports and to follow up with line Ministries and to give appropriate reports. That already is operational. I also set up a committee under the
Accountant General’s department to read all the financial statements of parastatals so that we see whether we are having value for our investments in these parastatals and already those are operational and doing quite a good job.
So, if this Parliament should consider going further to create a committee to follow up, we would be quite happy to work with that committee. Mr. Speaker Sir, I accordingly move that the motion to reappoint Mrs. Chiri to the office of Auditor-General be approved. I thank you.
HON. ZINDI: On a point of order Mr. Speaker Sir.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Unfortunately, Hon. Zindi, once I have taken my position you cannot then stand after me.
HON. ZINDI: You cannot have two bulls standing up.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Yes, even cows.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. RUNGANI: Mr. Speaker Sir, I move that Orders of the
Day, Numbers 6 to 33 be stood over until Order of the Day, Number 34 and the rest of the Orders of the Day have been disposed of.
HON. DR. KHUPE: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
COST OF SANITARY WEAR
HON. MISIHAIRABWI-MUSHONGA: I move the motion
standing in my name that this House-
ALARMED by the high cost of sanitary wear which has made it almost inaccessible to the majority of girls and women;
CONCERNED that the main producer of sanitary wear is faced with imminent closure;
FURTHER CONCERNED that schools are about to open and
parents have to buy sanitary wear for their girl children:
NOW, THEREFORE, calls upon the Executive-
- i) to immediately and urgently give a directive to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe to provide the required foreign currency to the main producer of sanitary wear so as to avert the closure; ii) to allow traders to import sanitary wear duty free as a short term solution; iii) to allow the dispensation for duty free importation of the material used to produce sanitary wear as provided for in the last budget; and iv) to implore upon the non-governmental organisations and the donor community to assist in provision of sanitary wear to the less privileged womenfolk.
HON. DR. KHUPE: I second.
HON. HOLDER: On a point of order Mr. Speaker Sir.
THE HON. SPEAKER: What is your point of order?
HON. HOLDER: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. My point of order is on privileges and immunities. As Members of Parliament, we need to stand guided. Mr. Speaker Sir, first of all, we would want to thank the Hon. Minister of Finance and Economic Planning for giving the Hon. Members CDF. There are challenges that Members of Parliament are facing regarding CDF. The reason why Mr. Speaker...
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, I had asked for any notices of
motions right at the beginning and that is the time when you should have raised the issue. If there are any administrative issues, approach the
Clerk’s office for correction.
HON. MISIHAIRABWI-MUSHONGA: Thank you Mr.
Speaker Sir. Let me also thank the Government Chief Whip for having accorded me the opportunity to get priority in the discussion over this particular matter. I stand to move this motion that speaks on a subject that I have constantly and consistently brought to this House; that subject being on sanitary wear. The reason why I am bringing this particular subject right now is because young girls are now going back to school and many of them will not be attending classes because they are unable to afford the issues around sanitary wear.
Mr. Speaker, there are two fundamental issues that I am bringing around the issue of sanitary wear. The first one is the issue that is to do with the cost of sanitary wear. The cost of sanitary wear has just gone up so much – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Please proceed.
Hon. Chinamasa having walked out of the House.
HON. MISIHAIRABWI-MUSHONGA: Unfortunately, the
Minister of Finance and Economic Planning is also going away; At least, I would have wanted him to stay a little bit because this is a subject that concerns him.
The Hon. Speaker called the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning, Hon. Chinamasa to approach his Chair and complied and took his seat.
HON. MISIHAIRABWI-MUSHONGA: Thank you, I am
indebted to you Mr. Speaker Sir. So, there are mostly two issues that I would want to raise around this particular issue of sanitary wear. I am glad that you have been able to get the Minister to come back even if it is for a few minutes. The first thing I want to talk about is to say, in consultation with the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning; from the previous Budget not this one that he presented, we had agreed and he had put in a rebate which was going to facilitate those that are in the production of sanitary wear to bring in the raw materials that make sanitary wear. Unfortunately, for one reason or the other, that particular position that he had put in had not been implemented. It had caused serious problems such that the one main producer of sanitary wear in this country which is Farai was about to close.
I want to thank the Hon. Minister, because in consultation with him and consultations through yourself, we were able to get Farai to have an allocation from the Reserve Bank of US$136 000 which has averted the crisis that we were going to have where Farai should have been closed. So, I actually want to thank the Minister for having facilitated and understood that it was urgent - [HON. MEMBERS:
Hear, hear.] –
In doing so Mr. Speaker, I actually want us to create a system where we do not necessarily have to go into a crisis mode for a production company that produces sanitary wear to get something. We know that currently, because of the shortage of foreign currency, what is happening with Reserve Bank is that it prioritizes those that should get foreign currency depending on the necessity of what should be imported. My argument Mr. Speaker, is that sanitary wear should be number 1 on that list. We should not have to negotiate for money for those that are doing production of sanitary wear. If we put in money for fuel so that cars can be driven and yet we think we can put sanitary wear somewhere at the bottom of the list, it makes absolutely no sense.
We have been talking that 52% of the population of Zimbabwe are women and I may hazard to say that about 40% of those women are actually menstruating. So if you look at it every day, there is a number of women that are actually menstruating. It is not accidental and it is not something that you can decide not to have; menstruation comes whether you like it or you do not. So, Mr. Speaker, the issue of sanitary wear and the resources that are applied to sanitary wear should not be an issue of prioritisation; it should be an issue of necessity. Just like as a nation, we can sit in this country and say we need to import maize because people need to eat, otherwise if they do not eat, they will die.
HON. MARIDADI: On a point of order Mr. Speaker. The Hon.
Vice President and the Hon. Minister of Foreign Affairs are in Parliament to listen to proceedings. I urge Members of Parliament on your right that if they want to congratulate them – and there is nothing wrong with that, I think they can do it elsewhere because the Hon. Vice President will benefit from these debates. He is in charge of the Executive and he would want to respond. I do not see the excitement of wanting to congratulate him now yet these were some of the criminals that were around the former President. I thank you.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order! - [HON. MUNENGAMI:
Shumba, hanzi imbomirai kumhorosa. Clinic yestress iya yakazofamba sei?] – Order Hon. Munengami.
Hon. Maridadi, you need to withdraw the last part of your point of order. You cannot say that those who were congratulating the Vice President are part of the criminals.
HON. MARIDADI: I did not say all of them, I said some of them.
THE HON. SPEAKER: No, no. Withdraw that statement!
HON. MARIDADI: You want me to withdraw it? Alright, I withdraw that those who are congratulating the Vice President were the criminals around the former President.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Some.
HON. MARIDADI: I am withdrawing that some of those congratulating the Vice President were the criminals who were removed by Operation Restore Legacy – that is what I am withdrawing Mr.
Speaker.
HON. MISIHAIRABWI-MUSHONGA: Mr. Speaker, I must say
that the amount of noise and the amount of not wanting to listen to this concerns me because the majority of people that are here are either married or have children. The issue of sanitary wear is actually a serious problem and it concerns me when we actually just deal with it as if it is something that we can joke about.
Like I said, as a Parliament, we need to agree that the allocation that is given to companies that produce sanitary wear is at the top of the list that is not part of the priority. It is actually a necessity because women do not choose to menstruate. It is a natural thing that happens and they cannot be punished for doing so.
Secondly, we also need to acknowledge that we have a real problem in this country. For most countries in Africa in particular, the issue of sanitary wear is given out for free especially in schools because you are dealing with young children that cannot afford. The former Minister of Education came here and gave us detailed information that when they do an analysis of children that attend school, they find that girls do miss school every other month and that is not because of anything. It is because they have nothing to put on when they go to school. They choose to stay at home and not attend. That speaks to the issues that then happen later in life which we are talking about in terms of gender empowerment and making sure that women will be in the positions that they are supposed to be.
Sanitary wear is not just a frivolous conversation. It speaks to whether you are investing in a young girl or not. I am hoping that when we look at the prices around sanitary wear, we can begin to say – where is it that Government itself can come in around the issue of sanitary wear just like we have the Presidential input where people are given maize and seeds. We need to make sure that there is an input that goes to the issues of sanitary because it is a real problem.
Having said so, I need to just demonstrate to you what is happening around the cost of sanitary wear. This is a box of tampons and it has ten of them. In most instances, for a young woman we are talking about a menstrual period between one to seven days a week. There is no way that she can use this packet where you have ten tampons to be able to go through that particular period. In fact, during her heavy periods, she can use this particular box of tampons within a day or two. This packet of tampons costs $4.60. If she is going to buy five boxes of sanitary wear, you are talking about having to spend $20 for every young woman. It is ridiculous. It is not possible for that particular individual.
If she has to choose a packet of cotton wool, 500g which will take her menstrual periods for about two to three days costs her five dollars. Even if she goes for this option, she will be working around a budget of ten or fifteen dollars. Again, this is ridiculous. If we talk about pads, it is exactly the same thing that I am talking about. A box of pads usually has five pads and it costs five dollars. If we multiply five by seven, we are talking about thirty five dollars. It is not possible.
For every woman or young woman that you are seeing walking on the street right now, she is either using a newspaper, that is if she can afford it. She is either using leaves or something that will cause other illnesses and diseases around herself. As a Government, this is totally unacceptable, which is why for me this motion is so urgent and we need to talk about it and make serious decisions at this particular point in time.
Having said so, there are new innovations that have come around issues of sanitary wear such that if as Government we were serious about wanting to be helpful, we would use other methods of sanitary wear. I have come to this House with tampons, pads and cotton wool but there is a new innovation that has come in – this is called a menstrual cup and this is a menstrual cup. Basically, what it does is that you put it within yourself and the blood goes into the cup. You just take it off, wash it and you can use it for close to about ten years of this menstrual cup, I am bringing this up now because the cost of this menstrual cup is fifteen dollars. Yes, it is expensive but in reality, if you do the calculations that I have said where somebody is using 35 dollars every month, it is much cheaper. The cup costs fifteen dollars because there is duty that is being charged on this sanitary wear. My request is that in the short term, because we do not have people in the country that are able to produce this cup, we should make sure that the importation of
this particular cup is free of duty. That would reduce the cost of the cup and it would also mean that as Government, we can set aside a particular allocation to be able to give to young girls in schools because if you give a young girl in school you will know that she will use that for ten years.
Like I always say, I am not talking about something that I have not personally used. This cup is safe. I have used it before. It is easy to clean. You do not need loads of water to clean up this particular cup. My request is that as we sit as a House, part of the rebates that the Minister was talking about – you remember we had the whole list for those of us who attended the post budget meeting yesterday, the experts gave us the number of rebates that the Minister of Finance has given that we encourage the Minister of Finance to at least begin to put a rebate on importation of sanitary wear.
Again, the cost that I have given you around the cost of these things in Zimbabwe is exactly half when you get this packet of tampons in South Africa. When you get a packet of Lilets, exactly the same company in South Africa, you buy it for two dollars. It is still a lot of money but it is less than five dollars. In the short term, if we allowed this importation and were able to bring these things without charging duty, it means a lot of other people would be able to buy these particular products at a lower cost.
So, Mr. Speaker what I am requesting for is that we as the House and I have been here as way back as the year 2000, the first time that I came to this House and have spoken to this issue of sanitary ware. I am about to get to the end of my political career sitting in this House, I beg you Mr. Speaker through the other colleagues as a gift to some of us who may not be able to come back next time, to at least allow that this subject of sanitary wear be the last time that we are speaking to it and bring sanitary wear to the young women who are struggling every other month. It is unfair and not right, and we as a people, mothers and sisters should take a stand, including the fathers that are here to be able to support this motion. I thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
*HON. MPARIWA: Hon. Speaker, I want to thank you for giving
us the opportunity to first debate Order No. 34 instead of the other issues. I am also grateful to the honourable who moved this motion Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga who often talks about sanitary wear whenever she addresses the Minister of Finance talking about the scarcity or the expense of the sanitary wear. At times parents cannot afford to buy sanitary wear for their children, especially those who are going to school so that whenever they have their periods, these young girls will be comfortable.
We have heard some people saying can we discard debate on sanitary wear in the august House and we have said we have to bite the bullet and debate it. Hon. Speaker, when a girl does not go through the cycle people will enquire why and sometimes even go to the doctors to ask why the child has not had her periods. Also when people give birth, it is through this process of these sanitary wear and the menstrual cycles. We are glad that the company called Farai which manufactures sanitary wear was given an amount so that it could continue functioning. We are happy that this motion has been introduced at a time when we are talking about the national budget. We believe that this motion will be given the priority that it deserves.
It may be an unfortunate situation that the motion has been introduced at a time when schools have just been opened and children have gone to school but we are saying when children go back to school for the second term, they will be very happy because sanitary wear will be affordable. When we talk about the support given to the company Farai it has to continue because first of all, it creates jobs or employment and also produces more of the sanitary wear. When people buy these products, they also pay tax which will keep the Government going and the tax so collected can be used to repair our roads and other essential things. As people of Zimbabwe, we benefit a lot from these products. Not only that, when Farai has manufactured the sanitary wear it is distributed and people downstream also benefit from the products.
We have the Ministries of Small and Medium Enterprises, Women and Youth Affairs. If people are empowered and given the knowledge of manufacturing sanitary wear, we can create more SMEs and create jobs for the youths. When we do that, instead of people flocking down to South Africa they will have jobs in the country and be able to sustain their livelihood. We have had some non-governmental organisations or civic society are who also encouraged to come and be partners in the manufacture of sanitary wear. We have people who have been working in these companies that manufacture sanitary wear and have the experience, if these people are empowered financially as SMEs, they will be able to manufacture these products and they will be affordable –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order Hon. Members!
*HON. MPARIWA: To conclude my debate, we have a lot of
ministries which can help so that the sanitary wear can be distributed free of charge. When distributing the sanitary wear, it should be numbered so that we know the number of people who are benefitting. If they are distributed through the ministries, particularly the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education a lot of people and young girls will benefit because we are going to count the number of beneficiaries to benefit and the distribution will be done accordingly. As parents, we will also be able to support that project because it will also be to our benefit.
Also when we talk of the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare, this is a ministry aimed at alleviating problems amongst our people. The Ministry will also be looking at the people who should benefit from BEAM. The young girls who will be going through their cycle will be targeted and will benefit. In so doing, we should try and find ways to fight corruption in the distribution of sanitary wear.
Mr. Speaker, I am grateful and also want to urge the Minister of Finance to take note of what has been recommended in this House, especially regarding the manufacture and distribution of the sanitary wear. I also want to thank Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga for bringing up this debate on sanitary wear because she has been very consistent. We need to use these - unlike in the past such as during the war of liberation were we had fighters using leaves, barks and other things.
Times have now changed and I remember when an hon. member debated on this issue talking about the problems faced by women fighters of the liberation, she really cried because of the memories that were brought back. I am hoping that Members of Parliament will debate this issue and support it so that more money is given to sanitary wear. I believe that it is not too late to bring up this motion. We can correct the situation. I thank you.
HON. MAKARI: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. First of all, I would like to applaud Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga for very noble motion that she presented here in Parliament but before I go further, I would like some clarity. She made a presentation on what you termed the
‘menstrual cup’. As a fairly young Member of Parliament I am very curious to know what side effects the cup could have on issues like the hymen. You know these are issues that are very central to our culture in terms of wanting to get married. I would also like to know in terms of the statistics – has there been research done? So, I would really like to know what research surrounds this innovation because we know that she made a very eloquent presentation where she gave us the prices of the sanitary towels. They are expensive so we are saying that, the ordinary Zimbabwean woman cannot afford to buy tampons, pads or cotton wool. So, if they have this cup, how are they going to clean it? Is it not an expense and what are the hygienic issues surrounding that cup? So, I would really like to have some clarity around that.
I would also like to really weigh in on this issue. We have a country that is predominantly women in terms of population and we are saying, we are 52% of the population but we are still talking about issues to do with sanitary towels. When our children do not use the correct sanitary wear, they are prone to diseases. I will give you an example of a constituency that I am a Member of Parliament for. In Epworth they cannot afford to pay $5 or $7 every three days – it is impossible. So, we are saying that the Government has to step up and give us options of low cost sanitary towels. They need to give us subsidies as well, as a country so that our children are protected from diseases. We are saying that this is going to have a ripple effect. When our children are sick, they do not go to school, and then we have a deprived community and country. So, we are really appealing to the Government of Zimbabwe and to the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning to help us in that regard.
I heard the Hon. Member talk about a particular company that produces sanitary ware, which is Farai. As far as I am concerned, it is the only company that we have. We are saying can the Government help us to get more players on the ground. We do not want monopoly because we cannot just have Farai alone. There are countries like India – we can use case studies from India. They have low cost sanitary towels. We can bring them on board and have ordinary Zimbabwean people running those businesses or companies. So we are saying, let us look outside the box and be able to save our children from diseases and also to make them for a healthy country. I think that is all that I wanted to weigh in. Thank you.
HON. MARIDADI: Thank you Mr. Speaker. The population of this country is 52% women and I wish the mover of the motion would listen very carefully because this is very important. On 52% women, I think it is for this reason that our Constitution made it possible for 60 women not representing any particular constituencies to be able to come to Parliament, because we recognise the importance of women in our country. We also recognise the demography of the country that we have more women than men. But Mr. Speaker, what disappoints me is that, we have this motion which talks about life. This motion is not about economics, but it is about life because it talks about a natural phenomenon. This natural phenomenon occurs to women and it is disappointing that women walk out when this motion is being moved.
Mr. Speaker, women are their greatest enemies - [HON.
MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] - Let us tell each other the truth and let us be honest with each other. Women are your own enemies because when Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga was moving this motion, we had more than 15 women who walked out. It should have been in the interest of women to sit and listen to this motion and women should be stampeding to the podium to speak to this motion, because women experience menstruation and men do not.
Mr. Speaker, I am a father of two daughters and I have a woman. That means in my household, we have three people that menstruate on a monthly basis. I do not experience it and I cannot speak about it with as much knowledge and passion like my wife. Because, when girls start to have their monthly periods, they talk to their mothers. So, it is the mother who is burdened with this information and I am not. If anything, I do not even know. There are fathers in this house that have five daughters and they would not know when one of their daughters is having her periods. The only reason I came to know about my daughter’s periods was that, they were so heavy and she had period pains. So, I would have to go and pick her up from school. That is only how I could know about her monthly periods, but the mother knew from day one. The mother actually knew before she even started because she had to take her through what she is supposed to do when she starts seeing blood coming out.
But Mr. Speaker, having said that, I want to say the issue of companies that produce sanitary wear should not be an issue of debate. I have a message in my phone today where a member of the community in Mabvuku is inviting me on Monday because he wants to hand over sanitary towels to about 52 girls from disadvantaged families but he says, the sanitary towels that I have are only for 52 girls and they will only last for one month. Girls are looking forward to it and this is going to happen on Monday. He has saved money. This guy has brothers in the United Kingdom that have sent him sanitary towels to present to girls in Mabvuku.
Mr. Speaker, we have been running this programme in Mabvuku for as long as I can remember and I am going to talk about women again. There has not been a single woman that we have contacted in the Diaspora who has been forthcoming. All the sanitary towels that are coming to Mabvuku on Monday are coming from men in the Diaspora Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga. They are coming from men in the Diaspora, not because men are making more money in the Diaspora but, because men understand that there is a problem that has to be solved.
Now, let me come to the economic issues of sanitary towels. I was driving in Mutare Road this morning and I saw car sales. I counted up to about I think 36 seven-tonne trucks that are for resale that have been imported and I was saying to myself, if each of these seven trucks is costing $25 000, that is millions tied in consumer products that are just sitting there, yet a company like Farai was almost closing down because they had no foreign currency. Foreign currency is being given to the wrong people. Actually, what we should be having is a plant in Harare, a plant in Marondera, a plant in Mutare, a plant in Bulawayo and a plant in every major city to produces these things. These things should be mass produced so much that girls must be able to have a choice to say, do I want the cup, do I want the cotton wool or do I want the tampon. Mr. Speaker, we produce cotton in Zimbabwe and why should it be so difficult to get cotton wool for women to use? Cotton is not imported from South Africa, yet if we want to use special cotton wool for this purpose, cotton wool from South African lands in this country at a cheaper price than the cotton that is produced locally. I do not understand why and the Ministry of Finance and Economic Planning must be seized with this issue.
Actually, the technology to produce tampons is not a very sophisticated technology. Hon. Makari spoke about it here that we could replicate what is happening in India. The technology is not very sophisticated and it is not very hard. You get technology from India and from China at a cost of less than $50 000. You can set up a plant in
Harare which produces these things in mass production. Actually Mr.
Speaker, our Government should adopt a policy where they say, at every Government secondary school, sanitary towels must be available and these must be available to women freely. Girls must be able to walk into the headmaster’s office and say headmaster, I am taking these three for myself and for my friends. Actually, they must be available in the toilets just like condoms are available in toilets. I can walk into the gents’ toilet today and get a whole box of condoms and tomorrow there will be another supply. I can take that whole box of condoms and tomorrow there will still be another supply. Why can we not have sanitary wear available in public toilets and not in parliamentary toilets – like the one that is in Africa Unity Square? If you put sanitary towels in public toilets, the only people that will get those sanitary towels are people that are going to use them because a sanitary towel cannot be used for anything else. So, there is no way that a person can get sanitary towels and keep them in his bedroom because you do not use them for anything else. It is like getting somebody’s national identity card, you cannot use it for anything else unless you want to throw it away.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I am saying the Minister of Finance, his deputy and the Permanent Secretary must be seized with this matter. When they come here to present the Budget, they must be able to say we have allocated so much money not into importing but into setting up factories that will produce these things locally. One, you are creating employment and two you are dealing with a natural phenomenon. The market is there. Women are there. Girls are there and men who want girls to observe hygiene are there. It is for the benefit of all of us.
I grew up in a family where we had four girls, all older than me. It was such a mess when they were having their periods without sanitary wear. I did not understand it because I was younger and I would just see blood all over the place and I would say what is going on in this household. In 2018, I do not expect what I experienced in 1975 to be experienced in 2018. This is 40 years later. There was Operation Restore Legacy, all the criminals around the former President have been taken out. So why are we not setting up factories? If it were in 2017, the excuse could have been that no, no there are criminals but we suppose all the criminals are gone. So, we must set up factories and produce these things.
Let people go back to their fields and produce cotton that should then be treated and given to girls for free. Schools have opened today, we should have seen truck loads of sanitary wear going to primary and secondary schools distributing those things. I hope this is the last time that we are talking about sanitary wear. I have once staged a one man demonstration and if need be, I am going to stage a one man demonstration and I will go to the President’s office and say please Your Excellency, I have daughters who need sanitary wear, please make them available for free and make them available soon.
Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga, Hon. Majome and all the
honourable ladies in this House, I am not going to withdraw that this is a cause for women and we expect all of you to be here to debate this issue. If my wife were listening to the radio now or I am sitting with my wife and we are listening to the radio and there is this debate, if she changes the station to another station, I will be very angry with her because I will say this is a cause for you and daughters, why are you changing the station. Listen to this debate because it is important to all of us. I thank you.
HON. CHIKWINYA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir, for according
me this opportunity to debate. Let me also hasten to thank most sincerely the mover and seconder of this motion and those that have spoken before me. Why? When I listened to this motion, I said not again in this House. This is an issue that we dealt with and spoke about two years ago and I thought those with ears have heard and action has been taken. I am very emotional all the time when this issue is raised because I am a victim. I am a victim because in the days of the struggle, no one thought about me as a young girl that I needed sanitary towels. I had to move wearing my camouflage ndichisvuuka pakati. My situation as a woman, I was unable to do what other women did thereafter kuita vana nekuti ndange ndakuvara.
Having said that, it affected my entire system. Not just me but several other girls who were out there. Having said that, this must cease to be spoken about at any forum. Action must be taken. Yes, I agree that several companies should come on board. I agree that funding for such a noble cause should not be an issue of debate but an issue of priority. It must not be an issue where it must be spoken about several times but any wise leader should take heed of this.
In the rural areas right now, the same situation that I had when I was a girl – imagine that I am now a grandmother and girls in this era are still having the same problem that I faced many years ago. They are using cow dung because cow dung can absorb. They are using tissue paper if you come across it. They are using newspapers. Along that, they miss school, 40 days a year. If you want the girl child to develop, how then do you develop a girl child who has missed school for 40 days because she is unable to get sanitary wear? We are talking about STEM as a subject but there she is, she is a good candidate for this country in as far as developing women are concerned but she has missed 40 days and you expect that same girl to do well.
As a Government, our inability to deal with this situation - let me not hasten to say it is tantamount to murder but it is criminal, satanic, and evil. This issue must be dealt with once and for all. Before I get too far, I put my matter to rest. I thank you.
HON. MAJOME: I also want to commend and thank indeed Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga for her persistence, determination and commitment to this cause. I do not say this lightly because I have seen Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga being disparaged in this House sometimes by fellow Hon Members and being mocked and derided by some Hon.
Members who are disgusted by the very subject of a natural process that is the biological process, that is the menstrual flow of blood. It has been said that it is taboo and she cannot say that but I want to salute Hon. Misihairabwi–Mushonga for not backing down because that is the process through which all of us human beings come from. Men and women in this nation are reproduced because of that particular process. Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga, thank you very much for persisting. To Hon. Makari, Hon. Mpariwa, Hon. Chikwinya and Hon. Maridadi, I thank you for supporting this motion.
We do have a national crisis right now. I am a little bit disappointed that Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga and Hon. Mpariwa did not go as far as to demand indeed that our new Government, as one of its very deliverables, very accessible low hanging fruits in this 100 days of Government; Government can simply make sure that they provide because they did good moves in the education sector. Right now, they are saying that children shall not be returned from school. Guess what Mr. Speaker Sir, although they say that children will not be sent away from school at the beginning of this term because of school fees, but they are going to go back home especially the female ones. They are not going to turn up at school because they do not have sanitary wear to cover themselves.
Some will indeed go home because of that. I sympathise with Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga and her seconder that may be they are starting to be weary and feel tired. That is why they did not go the full gourmet and say look Government, just provide sanitary wear in schools. In these 100 days, it can be done and if they want votes, I am sure that this is one thing that will guarantee them votes in the next election because of the numbers that have been said by fellow Members of the august House, that either menstruate or have children or wives or significant others that menstruate. That big proportion of the population will not forget.
This is a low hanging fruit Mr. Speaker Sir and the Government can do this. I want to mention the Kenyan Government. Some of us filled with envy just last year when the President of Kenya Mr. Uhuru Kenyatta announced that his Government was going to provide free sanitary wear to girls. That was a President who did not have a hundred day mission to achieve, but he did that because he realised the importance of that. I want to also support this motion by asking the Hon. Members to go further and require that the Government provides sanitary wear not only like what Hon. Maridadi says, secondary schools, but in primary schools. Girls are starting to menstruate in Grade 5, 8 years and so on, and by 12 years, most Grade 7’s will be in this predicament.
Some of them have parents who cannot afford to buy this. I want to urge them to go even further and require that the Government provides that. As has been said before, in terms of their trade cooperation agreements, our Government has trade agreements and aid agreements with organisations that deal with reproductive health that have caused an avalanche, cyclones and hurricanes of condoms to be pushed into this country. If we go just outside to the toilets, there are condoms in the women’s toilets and I see condoms all the time. I am sure there are some in the men’s toilets and in public places. This country is awash with condoms.
As has been said before, I will just say the obvious that the use of condoms and sexual activities are a voluntary affair and it is not a necessity. It is something that is avoidable. If that can be done to flood the country with condoms of all kinds, shapes and sizes, surely sanitary pads because they are also items of reproductive health, that is vital. They can also be brought in if our Government decides that it does not have it as a priority to do it in these hundred days and I repeat Mr. Speaker, low hanging fruit, just provide sanitary wear to girls in primary and secondary schools.
If our Government decides that it is not its priority, let it engage those other organisations that in as much as they are bringing condoms, may be they can just divide them in halves or in quarters and bring sanitary wear instead. I am also encouraging that as part of this whole dispensation of command fisheries and command agriculture, why not command sanitary wear Mr. Speaker Sir? – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear,
hear.]-
If we can do it in other spheres of our economy, surely we can do that in the area where the dignity of the girl and of the woman is safeguarded. There is nothing as inhuman and degrading as being in a situation as a woman where you just do not know how to stem the flow of your menstrual blood. It is terrible and it is dehumanising. I also want to support their motion and say that it is even quite sad that we are talking about one as has been said by my colleagues. One company manufactures sanitary wear and that is a scandal. I think in line with also growing the economy, priority must be given to those industries that manufacture even the use of cotton and so on and development.
I want to believe that there are other companies that also manufacture this, but we do not have enough of them. Can I urge that the movers of the motion also seek to amend it so that even the other ones are also supported? At the moment, there is a shortage and you cannot find tampons. I went shopping and if you go to any supermarket now, the range of sanitary wear is limited apart from this problem of it not being available and expensive.
If you try to look for tampons, there are various brands that we do not manufacture here anymore. There are different sizes, the mini tampons for the light flow, the medium tampon for the medium flow and the heavy one for the heavy flow. In fact, there is a fourth one for the super heavy flow. I challenge you even the men, do not be embarrassed, you can just walk up the aisles and this is a fact here in Harare. Go into any supermarket, you either find the minis which are the least popular because in terms of the exchange control situation, the importation of sanitary wear is a problem. There is a shortage now and even the pads and so on.
So, as we debate the budget, can we support those who are manufacturing it for components, but firstly, can the Government just do a command sanitary wear thing and also encourage those industries like
Farai and others. We thank Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga for getting the
Hon. Minister to agree to review it but can it be done and make sure that the Ministry of Health ensures that before we make the capacity to make it ourselves, can all those other sizes and varieties come in because right now, there is a big crisis. I thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. Command sanitary wear; low hanging fruit.
*HON. MATSUNGA: Thank you Mr. Speaker for giving me this opportunity. Let me thank Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga for moving this important motion for the women at large. Let me say that in June last year, we went on a study visit on the cancer disease in Zambia. What really touched me most in Zambia was that there is a Cancer Disease Hospital. Most women were more prone to cervical cancer and most of the cancer came through the use of T-shirts that were infected and the
Government worked together to try and find a solution to this problem. So, they decided to provide sanitary wear to women and for that reason, there is no woman who is using T-shirts or tissues or any unsafe material.
If we look at the issue of diseases in our country like HIV/AIDS, it is no longer a death threat as much as cancer especially for women, cervical cancer has killed a lot of them. We probably got infected during our primary school days and this has developed over years. I want to thank Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga for moving this motion. Some people used to discourage her not knowing that it is an important motion. If we look at the issue of cervical cancer, it is not caused by sexual activities, but it is caused by the unsafe methods that we use when we are having our menstrual periods. What Hon. Majome was saying was that go and visit the supermarkets, you will realise that the pads that were going for a dollar are now going for $2.99. Pads have become so expensive and it is very difficult for people who are living with disabilities or psychological challenges to afford them. If you want to see how women can lose dignity, it is during their menstrual periods. When I want to stand up and say something, it is difficult for me to stand up if I am not well padded because there is something that happens within me. It is a very difficult moment, especially for the girls who will be entering that stage.
So as we craft the budget, let some of the funding be allocated towards sanitary wear. If you happen to visit the maternity homes, there are some women who are single who do not have partners to buy the sanitary wear for them. It is sad that we have gone as legislators without any sanitary wear and implore the First Lady as well to donate sanitary wear for such individuals since she is visiting hospitals. It is difficult for most women because sanitary wear now ranges from $30.00 upwards. For some women, it is not affordable because they will not be having any income.
As we craft the budget, we need a command on sanitary wear for
all women. It is a painful situation really. If you look at it, you find that even those big men that you see, for them to be there it is through the women. Some women even use old blankets during their cycles. You do not feel comfortable at all and your dignity is compromised. This motion has come into this House over a number of years. I heard Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga saying that since 2000 she moved this motion but no one was taking it seriously. My request is that, gone are the days, we now need to act. May you please listen to us as women because as men where you came from was through us women; through that blood. If you respect us and restore our dignity by providing sanitary wear, making it available as much as condoms are available, we will be happy.
You go ahead talking about HIV, telling people to use condoms but you are not looking at the sanitary wear that is used by women and girls which affect their health in future. Today if I get cervical cancer, it is difficult for me to be treated but in the event that one contracts HIV, that person is able to live long through the Anti retroviral drugs. What I implore you to do is to avail sanitary wear in the toilets as you do with condoms.
Mr. Speaker, I am sure from the home where you come from, you have sisters, mothers and mother-in-laws who need that sanitary wear. There is nothing new because the generation that we now have is that children get to the menstrual period earlier than we used to do in the past. That girl child begins to feel out of place once that happens. So, when we talk of 50/50, we are told women are not capable of being part of the 50/50 because their dignity has been lost.
I just stood up to support the motion and that we need Command sanitary wear. Rice and beans is given in the open, why can we not also take trucks of sanitary wear in different areas and that it becomes an awareness campaign for us to help our children. I thank you Mr.
Speaker.
*HON. MUKWENA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir for the
opportunity that you have given me to support the motion. Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga moved a very important motion that has been seconded by a number of Members. My request Hon. Speaker, is that we request the Minister of Health and Childcare – I think every year we get statistics of diseases such as cancer, so what we request is that the Ministry in this short period of the budget should also go out and should be given funds to conduct study visits. It should come up with best practices to find out how much the machines cost. In this short period of time, we also know that our economy is melting down but we hope that we can bring in two or three machines in this short period of time that we have. As we progress, we can then have more machines coming in.
Hon. Speaker, I think the clarifications and explanations that came out in this House concerned everyone. No one is not aware of the challenges that women are facing. We are in a period of civilisation and what we want is for this situation that we are in to be in the past. It is not a big challenge in this country as we speak in this House. With these few words, I would like to thank the Hon. Members who have supported the motion raised by Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga. I thank you.
*HON. MAHOKA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir for giving me this
opportunity to add my voice to this very important motion. I would like to thank Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga for bringing this motion to this House, which is a painful one. It is painful not only for the women but even for the men and the elderly who are in rural areas. They are pained most because everyone nowadays is looking after orphans and other children who are girls. A grandmother who is looking after grandchildren cannot afford to buy sanitary wear for these children.
They cannot afford because those aged women do not even have money to take a bucket of maize to the grinding mill. So, how can they afford the sanitary wear?
I was thinking that cotton that is grown in Zimbabwe should be encouraged. Also, the Minister of Health and Childcare, as alluded to by Hon. Mukwena, should be allocated funds to ensure that they are able to buy raw materials to produce sanitary wear. What also deeply concerns us is the issue of condoms. Condoms are everywhere; I think it is because condoms are also used by men, that is why they are readily available.
I think it is important that we set aside a certain amount of money like the situation we have under HIV/AIDS. There is also this company that was mentioned by Hon. Misihairabwi-Mushonga that was supported by other Hon. Members, that it should be given forex to ensure that they provide sanitary wear for children in schools. The sanitary wear should be availed in the toilets as we do with condoms. People should be able to access the sanitary wear in the toilets.
In the rural areas, people cannot even afford tissues as a substitute for sanitary wear. What they have are useless pieces of cloths and those pieces of cloths have infections. So, for us to prevent such challenges, let us prevent because if that disease becomes rampant in this country, we end up having so many diseases. If there is a typhoid breakout, you find the Government running around to ensure that they address the situation. I think that same expediency that they use when there is a typhoid break-out should be the same when it comes to sanitary ware. Those are the children who are our future leaders; they are the lawyers and leaders of tomorrow. I think they should be availed with funding. We need a lot of funding that will enable the nation to restore its dignity; especially for women because once a woman is educated in a nation, there is progress. We were talking about the Auditor-General. For a child to have dignity and self esteem, that child would have grown up in a normal family.
If sanitary wear can be availed in toilets, I think the girl child will excel more in school. I think what is affecting their educational performance is because of diseases such as cancer. The pieces of clothes that they use are infected and that is what then causes cancer. We end up saying cancer cannot be treated in Zimbabwe. When cancer affects people, it requires a lot of funding and the challenge is that children are not being screened to check if they have not been infected with cancer. We have women in this House even those degreed; they are only monitored in terms of their reproductive parts.
I do not know who came up with the idea that women should be deputies. I realise that whenever there is a position, it is given to the male and the woman is given the deputy one. I think it is because men know that women are more intelligent and for that reason, they are discriminating against women. They are not concerned about the fact that they are being affected by cervical cancer. Women make up 52% of the population, even though they are discriminated against by the Government. However, what you forget is that women are the ones who give birth. I think that Government needs to sit down and consider the issue of women. For the men to be well fed and well looked after in the homes is because the welfare of the women would have been taken into consideration.
Mr. Speaker, if a child gets sick at home, it is not only the mother who is affected but the family. It is important that we avoid cervical cancer and ensure that the girl child is given an opportunity to excel in school. A girl child misses school because she is experiencing her menstrual cycle. She knows that she cannot get a piece of cloth from a bed sheet or an old t-shirt that can only be accessible to her mother. In the rural areas, they end up using the t-shirt and dirty sheets – [AN HON. MEMBER: Inaudible interjection.] – You are probably not agreeing with me because you are based in the urban areas.
Mr. Speaker, we talked about this in the absence of the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning. The Minister of Finance was supposed to be in this House when this motion is being debated so that he goes, considers and ensures that funding is availed towards sanitary wear.
There is someone who talked about ‘Command,’ because people think ‘Command’ should be in agriculture. I think ‘Command’ for sanitary wear is good and it will develop the nation because what is known as ‘Command’ is the funding that will be availed to that area. I think if ‘Command’ is put in place, it will assist our girl child in the rural areas. I thank you Mr. Speaker Sir.
HON. J. TSHUMA: Thank you very much Mr. Speaker Sir.
Good afternoon. May I please also add my voice and thank the Hon. Member, Hon. Misihairabwi – Mushonga for such a pertinent subject. I might be male but believe you me, I know the difficulties that our girl child goes through when it comes to this particular period when they experience their monthly periods.
Mr. Speaker Sir, I am a Member of Parliament from a very poor community in Iminyela in Mabuthweni where parents cannot even afford a dollar for a loaf of bread. This then practically and automatically means that they cannot even afford sanitary pads at all. I have gone around primary schools where I have seen sewer blockages. When the City Council comes to try and rectify that, they find tissue papers, torn t-shirts being used by these girls to try and stop the blood from flowing. I actually almost shaded a tear one day when I saw a little girl being ridiculed because blood was coming out and nothing could stop it. Her uniform was now stained with the blood. Instead of people having some sort of sympathy towards her, they were laughing at her and you can imagine how uncomfortable that could have been for her.
I stood to say one thing here Mr. Speaker. As a father of my household, I will never leave the feeding of my children or paying of my rentals to chance. I cannot sit down at home and see my daughter or my wife who is not employed coming in with groceries and be happy and think that it is alright and then sit down and eat not knowing where those groceries came from. I will be a very stupid man. Why am I saying so?
I want to come back to the point that has been raised by most Hon. Members here; the Government of Zimbabwe should never leave the issue of sanitary pads to anybody for any reason – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – no matter what.
This is one issue Mr. Speaker Sir, which you do not even need to debate about here. The only thing that we need to do is say, come the analysis of the budget, if there is not enough money or resources to make sure that sanitary pads are actually brought in and a plant is brought in as well by the Government, not by private players to come and manufacture these things, the budget must never pass-simple! – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] – We are talking of 52%, that is the majority, saka tirikurasika papi? We need to say, when the budget comes, let us review it and make sure that we up it for the sanitary pads first and make sure that the Government orders as a matter of urgency, a machine that will come here and do mass production of that thing and also make sure that the budget supports the production of cotton to make sure that next time this thing does not become a debatable issue; it should be automatic.
As much as other people have said that if you visit the toilet you find condoms, let us go into those same toilets and find sanitary pads – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] - as simple as all that. Mr. Speaker
Sir, I am going to close this debate by saying, no matter what happens,
Government must never leave the issue of sanitary pads to chance or to NGOs or to private companies. It is our baby, it is our mandate and we need to do it. We need to do it yesterday. Pamberi ne ‘Command Sanitary.’ – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] - I thank you.
+HON. N. NDLOVU: Thank you Hon. Speaker, although it was as if you had forgotten me. I also want to add my word to the issue of sanitary ware. I would like to thank the mover Hon. Misihairabwi – Mushonga and Hon. Mpariwa. This is a matter that has been going on for a very long time. The last speaker said that if we do not come to a conclusion on the matter of sanitary wear, the budget is not going to pass. So, if the Minister had been here to listen-because I know he does not have time to go through the Hansard. Mr. Speaker, I am a woman, a mother and I have children. There are people in constituencies – if we agree that sanitary wear will be distributed freely, it has to be said that if someone is found to be hoarding sanitary wear, they should go to prison for a very long time, just like they do with beans and maize. In the
President’s 100-day project, we want to know if he has heard of the
issue of sanitary wear. Truly speaking, if he fails on the issue of sanitary wear, then we tell him he has failed on everything. I thank you.
HON. RUNGANI: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. MPARIWA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 10th January, 2018.
On the motion of HON. RUNGANI, seconded by HON.
MPARIWA, the House adjourned at Three Minutes to Five o’clock p.m.
A t215225 19 December, 2017
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Tuesday, 19th December, 2017
The National Assembly met at a Quarter-past Two o’clock p. m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. SPEAKER in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENTS BY THE HON. SPEAKER
POST-BUDGET SEMINAR
THE HON. SPEAKER: I have to advise the House that the postbudget seminar will be held on Monday, 22nd January, 2018 at 0830 hours, at a venue to be advised; while Portfolio Committees will carry out their sector post-budget consultations from 23rd to 26th January 2018.
DRIILLING OF BOREHOLES UNDER COMMAND RAIN
WATER HARVESTING PROGRAMME
THE HON. SPEAKER: I wish to draw the attention of the
House to a letter that came from the Ministry of Environment, Water and Climate requesting you to identify four sites in each constituency where they can drill boreholes under the Command Rain Water Harvesting Programme.
You are advised to sit as the Constituency Development
Committees to identify such sites and advise the Ministry and
Parliament through the Constituency Development Fund Management Committee. The letter from the Ministry has been distributed in your pigeon holes.
STATE OF THE NATION ADDRESS
THE HON. SPEAKER: I wish to inform the House that His
Excellency the President, Hon. E. D. Mnangagwa will tomorrow, Wednesday 20th December, 2017 deliver the State of the Nation Address at a joint sitting of the Senate and the National Assembly at the Harare International Conference Centre (HICC) at 1430 hours. Lunch will be served at 1230 hours. Hon. Members are therefore required to be at HICC by 1215hours.
RE-APPOINTMENT OF PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE
CHAIRPERSONS
THE HON. SPEAKER: I would like to advise the House that following the cabinet reshuffle by His Excellency President E. D. Manangagwa, wherein Government ministries were streamlined and reduced to 22 ministries, the Committee on Standing Rules and Orders (CSRO) has re-aligned Portfolio Committees accordingly. There will therefore, now be 15 Portfolio Committees. The CSRO has appointed chairpersons to Portfolio Committees as follows:
1 |
Transport and Infrastructural Development |
Hon. C. Chitindi |
2 |
Defence, Home Affairs and Security Services |
Hon T. Dube |
3 |
Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development |
Hon. Dr. Mataruse |
4 |
Public Accounts |
Hon. P. Mupariwa |
5 |
Environment, Water, Climate |
Hon. Y. Simbanegavi |
6 |
Mines and Energy |
Hon. T. Mliswa |
7 |
Finance and Economic Development |
Hon. D. Chapfika |
8 |
Labour and Social Welfare |
Hon. M. Mudyiwa |
9 |
Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs |
Hon. F. Chasi |
10 |
Media, Information and Communication Technology and Cyber Security |
Hon. W. Dhewa |
11 |
Health and Child Care |
Hon. Dr. Labode |
12 |
Foreign Affairs, Industry and Commerce |
Hon. K. Paradza |
13 |
Lands, Agriculture and Rural Resettlement |
Hon. J.M Wadyajena |
14 |
Local Government, Public Works and National Housing |
Hon. Madanha |
15 |
Women and Youth Affairs |
Hon. P. Misihairabwi- Mushonga |
16 |
Primary and Secondary Education, Sports and Arts |
Hon. K. Musanhi |
Order, order. Hon. Minister Gumbo, I did not see you make abase to the Chair; you belong to the old school, you should know better.
HON. SPEAKER’S ADVICE
HON. GONESE’S POINT OF PRIVILEGE ON DEPLOYMENT
OF DEFENCE FORCES
Finally, on the 6th of December, 2017, Hon. Gonese raised a point on privilege concerning the deployment of our security services, particularly the army. I had promised Hon. Gonese that I would engage His Excellency, the President and come back to this august House to advise accordingly.
His Excellency the President, through the Minister of Defence,
Security and War Veterans has written this letter to inform us:
“Reference: Deployment of Defence Forces in Support of the
Police Service in the Maintenance of Public Order.
“I write to you Hon. Speaker with respect to the above subject matter. As you are aware Sir, in terms of sub Section 1 and 2 of Section 213, deployment of Defence Forces in the Constitution, the Defence Forces maybe deployed in Zimbabwe in support of the Police Service in the maintenance of public order. Only the President as the Commander in Chief of Defence Forces has the power to authorise such deployment. When the Defence Forces have been so deployed to assist in the maintenance of public order, Section 214 which refers to the political accountability for deployment of Defence Forces requires that the President must cause Parliament to be informed promptly and in appropriate detail of reason for their deployment and place where they are deployed.
In compliance with the above requirement, His Excellency the President of Zimbabwe and Commander in Chief of the Defence Forces has instructed me, that is the Minister of Defence, to inform Parliament as follows:-
As part of the programme to restore order, dignity and rule of law, the Government has launched Operation Restore Legacy, which is designed amongst other objectives to:-
- Bring thieves and other criminals who have been misappropriating public funds to justice;
- Restore order and cleanliness in the Central Business District of our towns by removing unlicenced vendors;
- Bring sanity to our roads by bringing to account drivers of commuter omnibuses, unlicenced pirate taxes and touts;
- Restore the confidence of the public in the role of the Police
Service in motor vehicle traffic control related duties;
- Bring order to unallocated State land by evicting those in unlawful occupation thereon; and
- Restore order at border posts by removing touts, beggars and vendors from the customs controlled areas.
The President has authorised deployment of the Defence Forces wherever it is necessary throughout the country to assist in the operation. The deployment will last for as long as it is necessary to achieve the set objectives but will be reviewed by His Excellency at the end of December, 2017.
Parliament will be advised accordingly as soon as possible thereafter. Signed by Hon. K. Mohadi, Minister of Defence, Security and War Veterans. ”
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. MATUKE: I move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 1 to
14, be stood over until we dispose the rest of the Orders of the Day.
HON. RUNGANI: I second.
HON. NDUNA: On a point of order!
THE HON. SPEAKER: What is your point or order and under what Standing Order?
HON. NDUNA: Standing Order No. 68. It is basically a matter of procedure which I believe you have not taken care of Mr. Speaker on requesting Notices of Motion. Not that I have got a Notice of Motion myself, however, procedurally Mr. Speaker, I think you need to ask for
Notices of Motion before you go into any other business – [HON.
MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] -
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, I think it is because there were too many notices - my Headmaster No. 2, I thank you for that observation [Laughter.] –
The Deputy Minister of Lands, Agriculture and Rural Resettlement [Hon. Marapira], having stood to give a Notice of Motion.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, Hon. Deputy Minister, can you
approach the Clerk of Parliament please?
Hon. Marapira approached the Clerk of Parliament.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Deputy Minister, you are guided
accordingly?
HON. MARAPIRA: Yes.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Thank you.
HON. ADV. CHAMISA: On a point of order Mr. Speaker Sir.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Is that an afterthough?
HON. ADV. CHAMISA: Yes, it is an afterthought, it is not a crime to have an afterthought, zvinobvumidzwa - [HON. MEMBERS:
Inaudible interjections.] -
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, including my panelist.
*HON. ADV. CHAMISA: Thank you Mr. Speaker. I have a few
words that I have stood to say, firstly on a point of privilege on Members of Parliament. This is on what you mentioned Mr. Speaker which was a welcome issue that His Excellency the President of this nation will come tomorrow to address a joint sitting on the State of the Nation Address. We know that in our Constitution, Section 140 (1), and also recognise that in our Standing Rules and Orders, Sections 167 and 168, give the right for Parliament to receive such an address. Since the President is still new, and as we are also approaching the end of the year, is there any consideration that tomorrow or in future we are allowed to pose questions to the President of the nation in order for us to respect what
the electorate is saying. That is provided for and if you say it is possible, it can be done. There is nothing that bars Parliament from posing questions to the President. It is there in the Constitution so, it is an issue that I want you to clarify.
Secondly, Mr. Speaker personally as a Member of Parliament I received word last night that they have been reappointments in the army in order for Gen. Chiwenga to rest a while,...... - [HON. MEMBERS:
Inaudible interjections.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order.
HON. ADV. CHAMISA: Mr. Speaker, I have not yet finished. It
is a point of privilege.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, Hon. Adv. Chamisa, you cannot raise issues as if you are debating – [HON. ADV. CHAMISA: Aaaaa. ]
– Yes, you raise one issue, that is what I will only accept - and not other matters that are not related thereto. If I may respond to your issue -in terms of Section 140 of our Constitution (3), “The President may attend Parliament to answer questions on any issue as may be provided in Standing Orders”. So, let us not mix the two, if you want His Excellency to come over and answer questions, let us have that as a separate issue altogether. You cannot mix it up with the State of the Nation Address. I thank you.
An Hon. Member having stood up unrecognized by the Hon.
Speaker.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, I have not recognised you. Let
us respect the State of the Nation Address to which we shall be privileged to articulate our views subsequently. Thank you Hon. Adv.
Chamisa.
HON. MLISWA: On a point of order Mr. Speaker Sir.
THE HON. SPEAKER: What is your point or order?
HON. MLISWA: My point of order first of all is to thank you for ensuring that we got our money into our accounts. It is only proper that when you do good, we must also recognise the good. We know that before we actually had a break, I did bring the issue of our allowances being outstanding and you did promise us [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible
interjections.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order Hon. Members at that corner
there.
HON. MLISWA: You did certainly guarantee us that you would
ensure that we get our allowances. I would like to thank you for that.
The only outstanding issue is really not your baby, but it is the stands. We hope that the Minister of Local Government can equally move quicker to ensure that we also get our stands. Let me also congratulate
Madam Deputy Speaker for being appointed as a Secretary for Women Affairs for the ruling party. I thank you.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Mutseyami, do you want to take
the Chair? You are the last Hon. Member on a point of order and please be brief, we want to get into business.
*HON. CHINOTIMBA: Mr. Speaker, my point of order is that I saw one of my Pastors who went to America, who is also a Member of
Parliament. He was seeking audience to say soldiers should be removed – he said a lot of things as a Member of Parliament instead of inviting investors to come to Zimbabwe and invest – [HON. MEMBERS:
Inaudible interjections.] – so, I wanted to say to him, as a Pastor, should he move around speaking about the removal of soldiers from one place or the other. When he stood up he did not even acknowledge that his mission to America was successful. As a Member of Parliament, we want to know why he visited America, to just hallucinate there. Surely if Members of Parliament continue to hallucinate, the economy will not stabilise. Thank you very much.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Hon. Chinotimba, if you want serious
debate on such issues relating to international affairs, you can bring that under a motion. Thank you.
MOTION
PRESIDENTIAL SPEECH: DEBATE ON ADDRESS
Fifteenth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion in reply to the
Presidential Speech.
Question again proposed.
HON. MARIDADI: Mr. Speaker, I am not rising to debate, but I am saying this motion here…
THE HON. SPEAKER: Which motion?
HON. MARIDADI: The motion to give a respectful thanks to the
former President - does it still apply, because I thought it would fall away with his leaving office? This is a new dispensation; we are expecting the new President to deliver the SONA tomorrow. We cannot be debating the past, I think we must look into the future and allow Cde. Mugabe and his past to go quietly so that we then look forward to the future. This is a new era and I think it is a bit demeaning on the incoming President that we still talk about the past, President Mugabe. We cannot talk about Cde. Mugabe now Mr. Speaker. I think it is very unfortunate but I think that motion should fall away. Thank you Mr.
Speaker.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Thank you for that observation Hon.
Maridadi. Yes, I think it does create some invidious position for debate and I will kindly ask the mover of the motion to so withdraw the motion from the Order Paper.
HON. RUNGANI: Thank you Hon. Speaker. I move that the motion be withdrawn from the Order Paper.
HON. MARIDADI: Mr. Speaker, for and on behalf of the people of Zimbabwe, I second the withdrawal of the motion. Thank you.
Motion that a respectful address be presented to the
President of Zimbabwe as follows: -
May it please you, your Excellency the President:
We, the Members of Parliament of Zimbabwe, desire to express our loyalty to Zimbabwe and beg leave to offer our respectful thanks for the speech, which you have been pleased to address to Parliament.
Motion, with leave, withdrawn.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
PLANNING (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. Speaker Sir, with the
permission of the House, I beg leave to revert to Order of the Day,
Number 8 on today’s Order Paper.
Motion put and agreed to.
SECOND READING
PUBLIC ENTITIES CORPORATE GOVERNANCE BILL [H.B. 5,
2017]
Eighth Order read: Second Reading: Public Entities Corporate
Governance Bill [H.B. 5, 2017].
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
PLANNING (HON. CHINAMASA): Mr. Speaker Sir, it is my singular honour to move that the Public Entities Corporate Governance Bill [H.B. 5, 2017 be read for a second time. – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.] –
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, this is my last warning to call members to order. If I identify one or two members who continue to disobey my call to order, I will ask them to get out of the House.
Because I could not hear what the Hon. Minister was saying.
HON. CHINAMASA: Mr. Speaker Sir, Section 195 in which the State has a significant interest must conduct their business in order to ensure commercial viability and they must abide by generally accepted standards of good corporate governance
Hitherto, our State enterprises which could otherwise have been playing a vital role in contributing to the revenue realised by Government, presenting employment opportunities to our citizens, producing exports receipts as well as products for domestic consumption, have instead, been the proverbial albatross around the neck of our national economy.
Previous efforts to encourage compliance with sound corporate governance principles such as the Corporate Governance Framework for State Enterprises and Parastatals in 2010 and more recently, the National Code on Corporate Governance in 2015, have gone largely unheeded by most public entities and in equal extent, by their responsible line Ministers.
Resultantly, the Auditor General’s report on state enterprises and parastals for the year ending 31 December 2016 once again revealed ongoing deep-rooted and far reaching governance problems within the state enterprise sector and self evidently underlined the continuing failure by line ministers to meaningfully address those problems.
That notwithstanding, this Bill signals the latest step in
Government’s ongoing efforts to bring order and rationality to the parastatals sector and to ensure that such entities once again make a positive contribution to national economic growth.
In many instances, management blames poor performance and unsatisfactory service delivery on the prevailing economic situation, even where the company they superintend has a virtual monopoly and
Government support in the sector in which it operates. However, upon closer scrutiny, the reality that invariably emerges is that in a good number of the cases, it is the management itself which is the root cause of the problem bedeviling the company.
While primary responsibility for management of public entities lies with the boards and management of the public entities, it is also clear that line ministers under whose jurisdiction a parastatal falls have been failing to provide effective oversight over the entities which fall under their purview.
The Public Entities Corporate Governance Bill is designed to address these issues by bringing order, structure, transparency and consistency to this important sector of our economy. It also seeks to further empower line ministries to exercise far stricter oversight of their respective entities and to ensure that those entities operate in line with sound corporate governance principles and practices as enshrined in the Bill.
In essence, amongst other aspects, the Bill gives legal force and effect to the national code on corporate governance which is incorporated into the Bill as the First Schedule. I will now highlight the key provisions of the Bill.
Scope of Application
As far as the coverage of the Bill is concerned, in terms of Clause
3, as read with Clause 2 (1), the Bill shall apply to all ‘public entities’ which are identified as institutions whose operations or activities are substantially controlled by the State or by a person on behalf of the State, whether through ownership of a majority of shares in the entity or otherwise and these include –
- a statutory body;
- a public commercial entity; and
- an entity established for the purposes of carrying out a project.
Save as otherwise provided for in the Bill, it shall therefore be mandatory, at law, for all institutions falling under this description to abide by the tenets of the corporate governance principles espoused herein.
Corporate Governance Unit
Clause 5 of the Bill will create a new Corporate Governance Unit as a department within the Office of the President and Cabinet whose functions shall be:-
- to provide an advisory and centralised support mechanism for line ministries to ensure strict compliance by all public entities with the provisions of the Act;
- to advise line ministries with regard to the regular evaluation of the performance of public entities and their boards and employees;
- to oversee the discharge by line ministries of their responsibility to monitor compliance by boards and senior management with the performance contracts;
- to establish and maintain up to date a comprehensive directory or database accessible to all line ministers and boards that will enable them to identify suitably qualified candidates for appointment to boards of public entities and
- to advise on the provision by line ministries of programmes for the professional development of board members and senior management of all public entities under their purview, including board induction programmes and corporate governance training for board members, chief executive officers and other senior members of management.
In other words, the Corporate Governance Unit will offer continuing support to the line ministries and the public entities concerned to ensure compliance with the tenets of good corporate governance.
The appointment of board members must be carried out in the most transparent way possible and each appointment must be based purely on merit.
As such, it shall be incumbent upon the appointing authority to furnish the unit with the qualifications of the proposed appointee and to explain what distinguishes that appointee from the rest. I refer Hon.
Members to Clause 11 (12) on this point.
Board appointees and senior management shall have a duty to declare their assets prior to assumption of office in terms of Clause 37. Declaration of assets will place a duty upon an appointee to explain the source of their income under circumstances in which there is an inordinate accumulation of wealth during, or immediately after their incumbency.
Remuneration of non-executive members of public entities and conditions of service of executive members of public entities
Clause 12 of the Bill addresses issues surrounding the payment of non-executive members of public entities. In short, the appointing Minister shall, in consultation with the Minister responsible for Finance, develop a ‘Remuneration Framework’ which shall form the basis upon which payment scales are formulated. That Remuneration Framework is in turn, submitted for Cabinet approval before it is implemented.
Issues such as the experience and qualifications of a member of the State entity, as well as prevalent salary scales amongst their peers will be of a persuasive value, but not in itself a benchmark upon which a board member can lay a demand. The crucial issue here is that the salaries will be paid depending on how a public entity is performing, and how profitable it is at a given time.
Clause 13 provides for the conditions of service of executive members of public entities. Similar to the above, the Minister responsible for the administration of the Public Sector Corporate Governance Bill shall develop model conditions of service for executive members which shall be adhered to and subject to revision where exigencies require so.
Restriction on remuneration of board members of public
entities
Mr. Speaker Sir, Clause 14 is of vital importance in addressing the ludicrous remuneration that members of certain public entities have been awarding themselves. Under sub-clause (10), the Minister assigned the administration of the Act, with the approval of the Minister responsible for Finance, and after consultation with the line Minister concerned, shall by notice published in the Gazette specify the amount that may be received, by way of remuneration, allowances and other benefits, by members of the board of any public entity.
This clause will allow a ceiling to be set on the amount of remuneration board members may receive, or even specify an exact amount payable. If a member breaches the remuneration set in terms of this provision, they will become liable to a surcharge for the purposes of recouping the value of the money improperly paid out to such member.
Strategic Plans of public entities
Mr. Speaker Sir, each public entity shall be expected to draw up a carefully considered Strategic Plan that maps out their intended objectives over a period of two to six years, and how they intend on achieving such objectives. This is in terms of Clause 22 of the Bill. The strategic plan will include performance indicators against which the company can benchmark its own performance and will ensure that the entity strives for a commonly held and understood objective. These strategic plans will be available for public inspection.
Performance contracts with senior staff of public entities [Closely related to this is the new concept of performance contracts that will be entered into by the Chief Executive Officer or a senior member of a public entity that clearly spell out his or her deliverables. These are provided under Clause 23. Where such CEO or senior member of the public entity fail to achieve the set out goals, they become liable to dismissal in terms of the contract. The motivation to succeed here is apparent, and these officers must ensure that they deliver on their key objectives.
Meetings of boards of public entities
Clause 23 will require boards to meet at least once every three months and to convene an annual meeting of stakeholders once a year to be known as the “annual general meeting”. They will also have to meet their line Ministers at least twice a year to provide feedback on operations and discuss any other such pertinent issues.
Additionally, in order to ensure that the Board continues to function if the membership of a board falls below a quorum, the board will be allowed to meet for up to 90 days pending the appointment of new members, but any decisions reached by the board during that time will be subject to ratification when a quorum has been formed in terms of sub-clause (2).
Conflicts of interest on part of board members and staff of public entities
Clause 34 will require members of boards and senior staff of public entities to declare conflicts of interest and prohibit them from taking part in their entities’ business where there is such a conflict. Failure to do so will result in the member or senior staff member ceasing to hold office as such.
Mr. Speaker Sir, with this presentation, it is now my honour and pleasure to move that the Public Entities Corporate Governance Bill
[H.B. 5, 2017] be now read for the second time. I thank you.
HON. CHAPFIKA: Thank you Mr. Speaker Sir. I had consulted with the Hon. Minister on the Bill because the Committee had not undertaken the public hearings consistent with the mandate and the Constitution on this Bill and I had requested the Minister to defer debate until such time that the Committee has had public hearings and a report has been presented to the Chamber. I thank you.
THE HON. SPEAKER: This Bill has been on the Order Paper for a while, why have you not conducted hearings?
HON. CHAPFIKA: Mr. Speaker Sir, it was overtaken by budgetary demands because that is the time when we were working on the 2018 National Budget. So, we could not undertake the public hearings on this Bill.
THE HON. SPEAKER: When do you hope to do this?
HON. CHAPFIKA: We will give it priority Mr. Speaker Sir.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Thank you.
THE MINISTER OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC
PLANNING (HON. CHINAMASA): In that case Mr. Speaker Sir, I move that the debate do now adjourn.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 20th December, 2017.
HON. MUTSEYAMI: On a point of order Mr. Speaker. It is a
small thing.
THE HON. SPEAKER: If it is a small thing, let it die. Your qualification to a small thing does not persuade me unless you had said it is something big.
HON. MUTSEYAMI: It is quite substantial.
THE HON. SPEAKER: No, do not contradict yourself. Can you approach the Chair?
Hon. Mutseyami approached the Chair.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. Hon. Mutseyami was
raising a small but big thing -what a contradiction. Basically, I think it concerns the issue of stands and we shall engage the new Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing to come up with the list of the stands as requested by the Hon. Members. We will engage the Minister accordingly.
HON. MUTSEYAMI: There is the second one. Thank you Mr.
Speaker Sir. First and foremost, Mr. Speaker Sir, is that I wish everyone a merry Christmas but my bigger issue is to do with our clinic here. Maybe for the Ninth Parliament as we go along, if we could have this clinic well equipped system with regards to managing of stress and all that – the counseling department is not there.
Currently, we have had challenges as Parliament, as the Eighth Parliament whereby we have had people who have been moved from positions and all that and people have gone through a lot of challenges, pressure, stress and blood pressure. It is very professional for this arm of Government of Parliament to have an institution which is supposed to deal with these challenges or these kinds of trauma in terms of stress through a counseling department so that people will understand that once they lose positions, they are supposed to be back benchers.
As we speak, there are some people who cannot understand why they are in new positions and they do not understand that they are back benchers due to lack of counseling. So, it is important to address the counseling department.
THE HON. SPEAKER: Order, order. I think that is a valid point to some extent. I have a cousin who lost his ministerial position and he became so stressed up that in the end, he could not recover from the stress. So, we will make some arrangements but there are some very serious stresses that might come when you do not win at your constituencies. - [Laughter.] –
Now for that one, unfortunately we may not provide services because you will not be part of the system.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND
PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI): Thank you Hon.
Speaker Sir. I move that we revert to Order No. 1 on today’s Order Paper.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
DISAGREEMENT BETWEEN HOUSES ON THE LAND
COMMISSION BILL [H.B. 2A, 2017] THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF LANDS, AGRICULTURE AND RURAL RESETTLEMENT (HON. MARAPIRA): Mr.
Speaker Sir, the Lands Commission Bill was passed in this august House on the 26th of January, 2017. The Senate proposed amendments which received an Adverse Report from the Parliamentary Legal Committee.
Nonetheless, the Bill passed in the Senate with those amendments. This august House rejected the amendments passed by the Senate. In terms of Section 6 (3) of Part 2 of the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, the National Assembly must resolve that the Bill be presented to the President for assent. Since the Bill is very urgent for the operationalisation of the Land Committee, I urge Hon. Members to, as a matter of urgency, resolve that the Bill be sent to His Excellency the President for assent and signature.
I move that this House pursuant to the disagreement between
Houses on amendments made by the Senate to the Land Commission Bill [H.B 2B, 2017] resolves that the Bill be presented to His Excellency the President for assent and signature in the form in which it was passed by the National Assembly on the 26th January, 2017 in accordance with the provisions of the Fifth Schedule, paragraph 6 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe.
Motion put and agreed to.
On the motion of THE MINISTER OF JUSTICE, LEGAL AND PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (HON. ZIYAMBI), the House
adjourned at Twenty Eight Minutes to Four o’clock p.m. until Tuesday, 9th January, 2018.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Tuesday, 5th December, 2017
The Senate met at Half-past Two o’clock p.m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE
SENATE
INVITATION TO A CATHOLIC CHURCH SERVICE
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I wish to inform
the Senate that there will be a Roman Catholic Church service tomorrow
Wednesday, 6th December, 2017 at half past twelve in the Senate
Chamber. All catholic and non-catholic members are invited.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. SEN. TAWENGWA: I move that Order of the Day, Number 1 be stood over until all the other Orders of the Day have been disposed of.
HON. MOHADI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
FIRST REPORT OF THE THEMATIC COMMITTEE ON GENDER
AND DEVELOPMENT ON ACCESS TO SAFE AND CLEAN WATER
IN RURAL AREAS
Second Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the First Report of the Thematic Committee on Gender and Development on Access to safe and clean water in rural areas.
Question again proposed.
*HON. SEN. MAVHUNGA: Thank you Madam President for
affording me the opportunity to debate on the motion on access to safe and clean water to the majority of the people which was moved by Hon.
Sen. Makore, seconded by Hon. Sen. Buka. The issue of lack of safe and clean water is pertinent. The lack of it causes a lot of water-borne diseases. I am grateful that our Chapter 4, Part 2, Section 77 (a) of our Constitution talks about the provision of safe, clean water to the majority of the people. That on its own makes us as a Government to ensure that these human rights are met. These are basic human rights that should be provided to the people and should be followed to the later. As a result, I urge that the Water Act and the ZINWA issue be aligned to the national Constitution. Currently, we hear that the Water Act is now in advanced form in its amendments so that it will be aligned to the national Constitution. Nothing has been done about the ZINWA Act in terms of realignment and we urge the relevant Ministry to look into that issue.
Madam President, I was among the people that travelled with this particular Committee. During these field visits, our findings pointed out that there is urgent need to have issues attended to. At
Gutu/Mupandawana, we observed that they do not have a map for the underground pipes in the town. People are building on top of those pipes and when there is a burst pipe, that is when they know there is a pipe underground and the same applies to Mberengwa. It would be good if Government were to ensure that there be research or investigation to find out what the maps for these underground water pipes are like.
There should be modern equipment used to find gold and such equipment should be used in growth points and other areas where development is taking place so that the water and sewer pipes are located so as to avoid theses unfortunate incidents of bursts. As a result of these bursts, people will be having inadequate water as we witnessed in Umzingwane. The plan that is in place was meant to cater for a few homesteads. We urge our local authorities and Government to ensure that the underground pipes where this planning was done a long time ago are known and mapped so that it becomes easier to know where they start from.
Our laws stipulate that people should have access to water at about 500 meters. This will make life easier for the women folk because they are the ones who normally draw water. When it is within that range, it becomes easier for the women because the women carry the babies and water buckets and when water is nearby, it becomes easier for them. We are cognisant of the fact that Government does not have adequate finance but provision of water is a priority. The stipulated 500m from the water source should also be applied. There should be reservoirs where there are mountains where the water is fed by gravity. It becomes easier for people to access this water once it is piped as it will be closer to people’s homesteads.
Turning to the physically challenged, they are having serious challenges in accessing water in the communal lands that we visited. They have boreholes and they are unable to draw water from the boreholes due to their physical disabilities. We need boreholes that are user friendly to physically challenged people so that they can easily access water. The water that we purify and then use for drinking should be drawn from dams. In the areas that we visited, we observed that there were insufficient dams. The Government should embark on a strategy where they make a lot of dams in this area so that water is easily accessed from nearby dams.
There are too many players in the provision of water. There is the District Development Fund (DDF), ZINWA and the local authority.
They have several pipes. The local authority will sink their pipes and ZINWA will come and charge for the water. So there is need to ensure that the three work as a single unit. I am happy that during the announcement of ministries, a lot of line ministries were consolidated as one. The consolidation of these ministries will eliminate duplication of duties. In Umzingwane, we found out that they charge a fixed amount of $7.00 whether you are utilising the resource or not and even when the pipes are broken, you pay a minimum fixed charge of $7.00. At times, people pay this amount without using that water – that should be looked into and rectified.
Madam President, I am mostly grateful for the motion before us. For us to ensure that it is a success, we need to ensure that those who are responsible for water should be given adequate provisions. The Ministry of Health and Child Care does inspections to ensure that the water is portable. They should have adequate equipment to ensure that they discharge their duties. We went to a place where people perished due to diseases caused by lack of provision of water. I leave this matter here and I thank you for affording me the opportunity to speak.
*THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: We are also
grateful Hon. Sen. Mavhunga.
HON. SEN. CHIEF. CHARUMBIRA: Madam President, I
move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MAKONE: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 6th December, 2017.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE 7TH RETREAT OF THE ASSOCIATION OF
SENATES, SHOORA AND EQUIVALENT COUNCILS IN
AFRICA AND THE ARAB WORLD (ASSECAA)
Third Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of the 7th Retreat of the Association of Senates, Shoora and equivalent Councils in Africa and the Arab World (ASSECCA).
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. CHIEF. CHARUMBIRA: Madam President, I
move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 6th December, 2017.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
DELEGATION TO THE EIGHTH RETREAT OF THE
ASSOCIATION OF SENATES, SHOORA AND EQUIVALENT
COUNCILS IN AFRICA AND THE ARAB WORLD
Fourth order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of
the Parliament of Zimbabwe Delegation to the Eighth Retreat of the Association of Senates, Shoora and Equivalent Councils in Africa and the Arab World (ASSECAA).
Question again proposed.
*HON. SEN. MACHINGAIFA: Thank you Madam President for
giving me this opportunity. I want to greet you in the name of Jesus Christ, how are you?
*THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I am fine and
yourself?
*HON. SEN. MACHINGAIFA: I stood up to add my voice to
the report that was tabled in this august House by Hon. Sen. Sinampande and was seconded by Hon Sen. Mawire and Hon. Sen. Bhebhe. They mentioned why they had gone on investigations in explaining the issue about climate change which has become a challenge for us here. It is a very important issue. I do not know how it can be addressed. How can we deal with climate change, how can we mitigate Climate change?
I remember during one of the years before I even dreamt of becoming a Senator, I read of a book where they mentioned that when they came up with solar energy they were hoping to harness energy from the sun and were expecting that there would be excessive heat. This was expected in years to come, but it seems like this has been a change for the worst as there is a lot of wind that is characterising our weather these days and it is actually destroying our buildings.
We need to mitigate the effects of climate change and find ways of avoiding this phenomenon. In order to do this we need to stop deforestation to ensure that there is no wind affecting the buildings that we have. Some are saying that the seed that they have and are producing have been aligned to the climate change phenomenon. This is looking at the fact that there can be excessive rain or heat. This is a very important issue because the learned should continue getting more knowledge and technology as to how we can mitigate the effects of climate change. Those in different religious groups should also pray for this climate change phenomena. Thank you.
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: Order, order!
Hon. Minister Mutsvangwa, may you please take your appropriate seat?
Thank you –[HON. SENATORS: Hear, hear.]-
THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR MANICALAND
PROVINCE (HON. SEN. MUTSVANGWA): Thank you Madam
President. Please forgive me because I had become used to my seat. I move that the debate do now adjourn.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 6th December, 2017.
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I wish to heartily congratulate Hon. Sen. Mutsvangwa on her recent appointment – [HON. SENATORS: Hear, hear.]- We have been recognised as the Senate, so when you are there in the Cabinet you will be representing us.
MOTION
FIRST REPORT OF THE THEMATIC COMMITTEE ON
INDIGENISATION AND EMPOWERMENT ON THE CIRCUMSTANCES SURROUNDING THE NON-
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE COMMUNITY SHARE OWNERSHIP
TRUSTS
Fifth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the First Report of the Thematic Committee on Indigenisation and Empowerment on the Circumstances Surrounding the Non-Establishment of Community Share
Ownership Trusts in Mudzi and Mutoko Districts.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. TAWENGWA: I move that the debate do now
adjourn.
HON. SEN. B. SIBANDA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 6TH December, 2017.
MOTION
FIRST REPORT OF THE THEMATIC COMMITTEE ON
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS ON SDG NO. 3
Sixth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the First Report of the Thematic Committee on Sustainable Development Goals on SDG
No. 3.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MUMVURI: Thank you Madam President. I rise to support the motion brought by the Thematic Committee on SDG’s moved by Hon. Sen. Chief Mutshane and seconded by Hon. Sen. D.T Khumalo. Hon. Sen. D.T. Khumalo constantly talks about nutritional issues. We are not just talking of ordinary foods but we are talking about foods that are good for health. The problem that we are facing these days is that we are having too much refined foods. These too much refined foods are causing diabetes. Dr. Mangwiro, if we observe on television constantly urges people to have a small amount of sadza in the afternoon and not to consume large quantities when going to bed. A lot of food should be consumed at lunch and breakfast at least. That is what is encouraged not that we constantly eat because this constant eating is causing non-communicable diseases, the majority of us are aware of this.
Processed foods are not right and we should eat unrefined foods and fruits such as bananas, apples, pawpaws and watermelon. This is what we must consume because these foods do not have side effects on our bodies. These foods reduce cholesterol in our bodies and the fruits that I have mentioned, if we fill our stomachs with those, there will not be side effects in our bodies, these foods are easily digested and releases the energy required.
If you give a child a choice between a banana and ice cream they chose an ice cream. We should teach our children the correct things; they should eat more fruits than these sugary foods. You must have good eating habits of foods that are healthy to our bodies. Kwashiorkor is caused by some of these things because they lack the necessary vitamins needed by the body resulting in malnutrition. At home I encourage my family to consume brown bread and roller meal and say no to refined mealie meal. During my absence they are happy and take white bread and refined meal. I always tell them that they will consume refined foods once they have their own houses.
I urge them to have foods that are good for their health. A sickly workforce cannot work to uplift or develop the economy of the country. They can only be healthy once they eat healthy foods. We are lucky that food security has been achieved this year through the Command agriculture exercise that we conducted. We are not importing food from outside the country. All this supports Goal number 3 which the Committee has made mention of and found it pertinent to bring such a motion before us. All sports persons including footballers should consume health foods; there must be a suitable diet for sports persons and non sports persons. Healthy people do their work properly because a healthy nation is vital and this lead to development. Sickly persons cannot spend 8 hours working. I urge people to stick to healthy foods so that we fulfill Goal number 3.
I once lived in Sweden they do not use sugar and salt in their food. They believe that all foods contain natural salts and sugars and this is why their elderly persons live longer. I copied the habit because I saw that it was good, sugars and salts are not good for one’s health. People believe they can get a lot of strength from consuming too much salt but salt can cause liver cirrhosis. The consumption of alcohol and being drunk all the time is not fashionable. In Sweden they take one or two pints of alcohol between a meal and they are dismissed to sleep or elsewhere. They do not spend the whole night drinking beer, they only take it during weekends.
We cannot be a society that does not know how to eat healthy foods because the best doctor for anyone is the foods they take. Prevention is better than cure. I am happy that the Minister of Health and Childcare has just walked in. I want to repeat that we must eat a lot of fruits and avoid alcohol. Drunkards are prone to accidents and require compensation after being injured at work and come late to work because of hangover. I am happy because now we have a new dispensation and I would like to congratulate several Ministers appointed in this House, including Dr. Parirenyatwa, Hon. Mupfumira, Hon. Sen. Masuku and others that I might not have mentioned not forgetting Hon. Sen. Khaya Moyo – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] - The President is leading by example, he arrives at work at 0800hrs and leaves at 1800hrs...
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: You are going out
of topic Hon. Senator.
HON. SEN. MUMVURI: All this comes from good food. The
President of the Senate and has informed me to stick to my debate, let me wind up my debate by saying this motion which was brought by Hon. Sen. Chief Khumalo and his Committee is a good one. We should take it very seriously and practice what we preach. Over and above taking good food, we must exercise – as old as we are, we must exercise. Let us set aside 30minutes daily of burning fat. With these few words, I thank you Madam President.
* THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: We thank you
for your warning Hon. Sen. Mumvuri.
HON. SEN. GOTO: Thank you Madam President for the
opportunity that you have granted me to speak on the motion. I thank the movers of the motion, Hon. Sen. Chief Mtshane and the seconder of the motion on the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) No. 3 about healthy foods that we require to live. This is a good motion, you may not understand it but it is important because if you were to follow what is being set out in that motion, all of us can live.
I want to give an example that in the olden days, our forefathers used to eat good and healthy foods unlike us. Our great grand parents lived up to 120 to 130 years because they were eating good food and not the junk food that we are eating these days. I want to support the previous speaker that we must have a balanced diet. Like he said, without repeating, we must have sadza made of rapoko and round nuts, okra and mice, that is balanced diet. We should be able to eat what we grow. Mice and caterpillars are a balanced diet. Protein is derived from mice and caterpillars, and vitamin C comes from the fruits. Rapoko sadza gives us energy. We can have our food which is balanced and we would not have spent a single cent.
I am quite happy about the motion on the balanced diet. At one time I was a nutrition promoter. There is nothing useful about meat, it actually causes a lot of diseases. I am happy that he made mention of having light food during the evening, let us have light meals. A plate full of sadza or rice and chicken is not good for one’s health. Hon. Sen. Chief moved a very good motion and if you follow such a motion, you will have a good health. If you go to the doctor and you are sick then you are told to stop eating certain foods, you will still be tempted to eat such foods.
A lot of food can be consumed and they protect one from diseases. I support the motion by the Hon. Chief and Hon. Khumalo, we are all healthy because of such dietary issues. In the hotel, there will be caterpillars, dried vegetables with peanut butter and people cannot even take okra, they put everything there and fruits but you see Members rushing to have ice cream which is detrimental to one’s health. I am grateful for such a motion, I fully support it and if possible all of us should go home and practise that.
I would like to thank the appointment of Ministers in this august
House and that God should lead us. We are happy that we have been recognised. I thank you. I no longer have more words to say Mr. President. I am happy that the Senate has been recognised through the appointment of Ministers.
A lot of people did not speak on this motion because a lot of them did not understand it because they do not practise it. If at home you are having a mountain full of sadza and a lot of meat, you will have eaten nothing. You will only have had two types of foods, which is energy and protein and you do not have Vitamin C. There is no warmth which can make you live a healthy life. You are refusing to eat the vegetables and wild fruits, let us consume this. I thank you Hon. Sen. Chief.
HON. SEN. CHIEF MTSHANE: Thank you Mr. President. I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. CHIEF SIANSALI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 6th December, 2017
MOTION
PRESIDENTIAL SPEECH: DEBATE ON ADDRESS
Seventh Order read: Adjourned debate on motion in reply to the
Presidential Speech.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. KOMICHI: On a point of order Mr. President. I
strongly suggest that the motion be removed from the Order Paper because the Presidential Speech is now outdated, we expect the new President to come up with a speech that we can debate on.
HON. SEN. CHIEF CHARUMBIRA: Mr. President, I concur with Hon. Sen. Komichi. However, I wanted to be more democratic than democracy itself by allowing anyone who would have wanted to debate, I do not have to close. My duty is to look around and say, if there are no more Senators who wish to debate, I am now closing. Mr. President, I therefore move that this motion – to remove maybe too strong. There are those who debated this motion, several of you, probably more than 20 and we cannot just throw away all the good words you mentioned but we take note that this motion, because of the recent developments in the country, it has lived its useful life, the shelf life is expired, it has to be removed from the shelves so that we put new items.
As a result, those who might have wanted to contribute, I believe the issues and challenges of the country remain the same. So, when another opportunity arises where they will be debating a motion under the new President, the same issues will still be brought in because the challenges remain the same. I am aware that the new leadership will also simply highlight on the same issues. So, I move that we adopt. When we adopt, meaning zvamakataura zviya zvinobvumwa. So, we agree zvamakataura nguva iyoyo zviri right; we adopt so that the Ministers can even respond in future to what you said under the previous leadership. So I, so move that the motion be adopted.
Motion that a respectful address be presented to the President of
Zimbabwe as follows:-
May it please you, your Excellency, the President:
We, the Members of Parliament of Zimbabwe, desire to express our loyalty to Zimbabwe and beg leave to offer our respectful thanks for the speech, which you have been pleased to address to Parliament.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
FIRST REPORT OF THE THEMATIC COMMITTEE ON PEACE
AND SECURITY ON THE PREPAREDNESS OF THE GRAIN
MARKETING BOARD TO HANDLE THE 2016/2017 CROP
DELIVERIES AND THE SUCCESS OF THE COMMAND
AGRICULTURE PROGRAMME
Eighth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the First
Report of the Thematic Committee on Peace and Security on the
Preparedness of the Grain Marketing Board to handle the 2016/2017
Crop Deliveries and the Success of the Command Agriculture
Programme.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MUMVURI: Madam President, I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. CHIMHINI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 6th December, 2017.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE ZIMBABWE DELEGATION TO THE
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON PROMOTING
STAKEHOLDER AND PARLIAMENTARY DIALOGUE ON
THE ARMS TRADE TREATY (ATT)
Ninth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of the Zimbabwe delegation to the International Conference on Promoting
Stakeholder and Parliamentary Dialogue on Arms Trade Treaty.
Question again proposed.
THE MINISTER OF HEALTH AND CHILD CARE (HON.
- PARIRENYATWA): Madam President, I move that the debate do now adjourn.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 6th December, 2017.
On the motion of THE MINISTER OF HEALTH AND CHILD
CARE (HON. DR. PARIRENYATWA), the Senate adjourned at
Twenty Five Minutes past Four o’clock p.m.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Wednesday, 6th December, 2017
The Senate met at Half-past Two o’clock p.m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE
SENATE
PRESENTATION OF THE 2018 NATIONAL BUDGET
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I wish to inform
the Senate that the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning will tomorrow, Thursday 7th December, 2017 present the 2018 National Budget in the National Assembly. The Senate will view the presentation from the television screens in the Senate Chamber.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
HON. SEN. CHIEF CHARUMBIRA: I move that Order of the Day, Number 1 on today’s Order Paper be stood over until all the other
Orders of the Day have been disposed of.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
FIRST REPORT OF THE THEMATIC COMMITTEE ON GENDER
AND DEVELOPMENT ON ACCESS TO SAFE AND CLEAN WATER
IN RURAL AREAS
Second Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the First Report of the Thematic Committee on Gender and Development on Access to Safe and Clean Water in Rural Areas.
Question again proposed.
*HON. SEN. BHEBE: Thank you Madam President for affording me this opportunity to add a few words on this motion: Motion on the
First Report of the Thematic Committee on Gender and Development on Access to Safe and Clean Water in Rural Areas by Hon. Sen. Makore. Madam President, everyone in the world has a right to clean and enough water. Some Hon. Senators have already spoken on this motion that we should have clean water. If you go to the rural areas, there are some places where there is shortage of water, even the boreholes are a distance away. It is difficult for them to get water even from the dams because the water will be dirty which causes people to suffer from diseases. The Government should embark on programmes that would assist people to get clean and safe water. At times, it is difficult in some rural areas to drill boreholes but there are dams in some places. Wells should be dug in some places so that people will get clean water. Children go to schools where there is no water or where the boreholes are too far. This leads to them missing their lessons because they are sent by the teachers to go and fetch water. It is difficult for them to get water in such areas. We are told that people do not drink water in those areas because the water is salty. I do not know how the Government can assist but I would like to say, Government should drill boreholes where there are dams and provide piped water to villagers.
Many people are drinking dirty water and people end up getting sick from drinking clean water because they are used to dirty water. My request is that, if the Government could drill more boreholes, that would assist women. Women suffer a lot in trying to fetch water because some of them will be pregnant and they are forced to go and fetch water. I do not know what can be done for people to access clean water. We are all clean here because we used clean water, even the drinks that we take are made from water but that depends on what type of water is being used, whether it is clean water or not. Some people suffer from malaria because of dirty water, and also suffer from bilharzia. Plead with the Government to assist by drilling boreholes and making sure that piped water get to villagers. That would be better for the villagers.
For us in town, we might not understand what we mean by dirty water but if we go out into the rural areas and even to the clinics, the nurse will tell the patients that if you want me to treat you, get me clean water because they have no access to water. In some cases, some nurses refuse to go to areas where there is no water but if there is water, it will be better. Everyone should have clean water.
Many people have already spoken about the importance of having clean water and how the Government can assist. I was listening to the radio today and there was a programme where it was said that the Minister of Water has a programme whereby they want to harness a lot of water from the dams in order to try get the water to everyone. We are talking about clean water because everyone has a right to clean water.
In the Constitution, it is written, everyone should have clean water. Madam President, I do not want to repeat myself. With those few words, I thank you.
+THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I also thank you
Sen. Bhebe.
+HON. SEN. B. SIBANDA: Thank you Madam President for affording me this opportunity. I would want to add a few points because a lot of things have already been said. My first point that I would like to make Madam President, is that people in Zimbabwe who reside in rural areas are about 70 percent. From my view, about 40 percent or so do not have clean water. We must always remember that water is life. If you want to destroy a tree, remove the bucks and if it does not get water, it will die naturally. That is the same with people. If they do not get water, their life deteriorates. What I can say is that the quality of life people depend on is the type of water they drink. I say that because many people get water from dams which they share with cattle, donkeys and goats. We know how donkeys behave. After drinking water, a donkey will pass urine in the dam. That means people are drinking urine from the water. I know how bad bilharzia is because people also get into water contaminated with bilharzia and they catch bilharzia, cholera and dysentery that all come from dirty water. We know how bad these diseases are.
Lastly, for us men, maybe we do not appreciate how bad the issue of water is. I once tried to carry a 20-litre container of water and it is that day that I realised what women go through when they fetch water. I failed to lift a 20-litre container of water and had to ask someone to assist me. For women, it is easy; they carry those 20-litres of water and at times we abuse that water and they have to go back again to fetch more water. It is important for people to have clean water. With those few words Madam President, I thank you. I also thank the Chairperson of the Committee that has brought forward this motion and all those who have contributed to the motion. I thank you.
+THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: Those were
few points for sure. Thank you.
*HON. SEN. MUGABE: Thank you Madam President for the opportunity that you have given me to add my few words on the motion that was brought through the report that was tabled by the Thematic
Committee on Gender and Development that is chaired by Hon. Sen. Makore and was seconded by Hon. Sen. Buka. We want to thank these Members. I am also a Member of the Committee.
Madam President, water is life for every individual. In that regard, before I proceed, in case I may repeat what has already been said by other Hon. Members - because I did not understand the other language.
So, may you excuse me because I may repeat what has already been said, but I would want to emphasize by adding a few points.
When I said that, water is life, when we look at our Constitution on Section 77, “Every person has the right to – (a) safe, clean and potable water; and (b) sufficient food,” I say food because there is no way you can grow food without water, that is why the Committee’s objective was to see how people living in the rural areas could access water. Zimbabwe is landlocked by other countries that draw water from other seas and oceans, but Zimbabwe - despite that has dams and rivers. Some of the rivers do not have water perennially. The birth rate in Zimbabwe is quite high and for that reason, there is need to ensure that there is sufficient water for the people. As the Committee travelled, we realised that the boreholes are very few and we need to embark on massive programmes to ensure that there is borehole water.
So Madam President as we went on tour, we realised that 35% of boreholes in the areas that we visited were no longer in use. Some do not have adequate water and others have water borne diseases affecting the teeth. We think that through the law, the local authorities should have machines to drill boreholes. These could be hired by individuals, farmers, cooperatives, communities and even schools can hire these drilling rigs from councils. For example, they can put diesel in those drilling rigs to ensure that they are able to drill boreholes.
We also witnessed as positive in Umzingwane area, we saw how people live and their way of life. The way they access water is actually good, especially for those living with disabilities. There has been technology that is sensitive to their needs because the borehole was drilled just below a mountain and water is harnessed using solar energy. The water goes into reservoirs at the top of the mountain and then feeds into different communities in the rural areas that are more like villages belonging to different village heads. Yes, it might be small but we realised that if this technology could be spread to different parts of
Zimbabwe, whereby we have such boreholes and water is pumped into reservoirs at a higher level, even those living with disabilities can access water. Our request is that funds permitting, these initiatives should be spread throughout the country.
We also realised that there are water committees in different villages but the challenge is that they do not have adequate resources hence when a borehole breaks down, they cannot repair it because of the shortage of resources. The experience that we realised in Gokwe was that the water that is drawn from boreholes actually affects the teeth. So there is need to engage in extensive research to check what chemicals are in the water. Yes, there is the water and sanitation hygiene programme known as ‘WASH’. The Government has engaged WASH extensively but it is not adequate because when it comes to ablution facilities, the ratio of the children to the squat holes is not adequate and children end up using the bush as toilets. So there is need for sanitation technology in this area.
When I mentioned people living with disabilities trying to access piped water, even the elderly will also be able to access water if it is drawn and distributed through pipes. Furthermore, our Constitution on
Chapter 2, Section 13 states that:-
“(1) The State and all institutions and agencies of Government at every level must endeavour to facilitate rapid and equitable development, and in particular must take measures to –
(b) foster agricultural, commercial, industrial, technological and scientific development”.
I want to talk about agriculture. When there is no water, there is no progress and if we look at the rural areas – again; when we look at women and equality between men and women, we realise that gender equality is not balanced because we noted that people travel long distances in search of water. Yet according to our Constitution, people are supposed to access water within 500 meters, which means that if a woman can walk for a kilometer in search of water, it means that she has little time to engage in productive activities because most of the time is spent whilst accessing water for the home, and that affects us as women. In terms of food security - also because she has limited time to engage in productive work such as farming and other economic programmes. Sometimes people spend the whole day drawing water for their livestock. School children are also urged to bring their own water to school, so now when a child does not have adequate water, one can actually fall whilst carrying the water. By the time they get to school, that child does not have any water to use. So the issue of water is a challenge, hence I said water is life.
In The Herald publication of Monday, 4th December, 2017, there was an issue on Zvimba whereby there has an been outbreak of typhoid. So, there are also other diseases that can affect people such as bilharzia and diarrhoea, because the water is not clean. We realised that people are also drawing water from unsafe sources and this causes various diseases.
These are some of the issues that I wanted to share with rest of the
House. I thank you.
HON. SEN. MAKORE: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MARAVA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 7th December, 2017.
MOTION
FIRST REPORT OF THE THEMATIC COMMITTEE ON
INDIGENISATION AND EMPOWERMENT ON THE
CIRCUMSTANCES SURROUNDING THE NON-ESTABLISHMENT
OF THE COMMUNITY SHARE OWNERSHIP TRUSTS
Third Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the First Report of the Thematic Committee on Indigenisation and Empowerment on the Circumstances Surrounding the Non-Establishment of Community Share
Ownership Trusts in Mudzi and Mutoko Districts.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. TAWENGWA: I move that the debate do now
adjourn.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 7th December, 2017.
MOTION
FIRST REPORT OF THE THEMATIC COMMITTEE ON
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS ON SDG NO. 3
Fourth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the First Report of the Thematic Committee on Sustainable Development Goals on
SDG No. 3
Question again proposed.
*HON. SEN. TIMVEOS: Thank you Madam President for
affording me this opportunity to debate on this motion that was raised by Hon. Sen. Chief Mtshane. I would like to thank him and his Committee for having brought this motion on SDGs Number 3 that was brought before the Senate.
A lot of Senators have spoken about this issue but SDG number 3 is very important, because it gives us a chance as a country to take stock of the health of our people. It also helps the Government to ensure that the people have good health.
I would like to add a few words by saying that since the year 2000, several issues have happened which have been an indicator that things can get better. I would say those that are living with HIV and AIDS are accessing their antiretroviral drugs, but there are others who are mourning that when they approach these clinics, some of the drugs may not be available. When they go to district hospitals, they are asked to pay a user fee which is very difficult for them to access. We urge Dr. Parirenyatwa to look into this issue of the user fee as regards the antiretroviral drugs. However, the point is that a lot of major hospitals are charging the user fee for ARV drugs. The SDG says by 2030, everyone should have all their requirements pertaining to their health once they fall ill. They should get medication for their treatment and that these drugs should be available at all district hospitals, and the hospitals should not be levying a user fee as this tends to disadvantage our people, thus affecting their health. On the issue of new born babies, we still have a long way to go because the majority of these are dying in their infancy stage. I witnessed an incident in Zvishavane where a mother died whilst she was giving birth. Our district hospitals do not have adequate funding, so the doctors have their own private surgeries which charge about $20, whereas if you go to Government hospitals, you are charged less.
So, the availability of doctors in Government hospitals is very scarce.
These doctors spend most of their time at their private surgeries. The Government should come up with measures to ensure that the doctors are keener to work in for Government hospitals. They should also do something to ensure that the doctors love everyone in Zimbabwe, regardless of their poverty or affluence. Doctors should reside close to hospitals so that anytime they will be on call so that they could assist women that go into labour during any time of day. It is difficult for them to do that. So those that assist the pregnant mother will not be experienced enough and that is why the mortality rate for new born babies is very high. This is a threat to the aims of SDG 3. I would want to revisit the issue of antiretroviral drugs in adolescents. When we went to Beitbridge with the National AIDS
Council, we saw teenagers living with HIV/AIDS. The majority of them are shy, they do not want to go and receive medication because they do not want their friends to know of their condition.
It is difficult for the parents to disclose to the children that they were born HIV positive. They would rather mislead them that they are suffering from asthma, headache or some other ailment. Only when they become 20 years or more, that is when they become aware that they were HIV infected and that they are taking ARVs. We should come up with programmes as the Ministry of Health to ensure that our adolescents are enlightened so that they can come out clean in terms of their status so that they can access ARVs which are helpful to their lives.
We have the issue of cancer; it is a serious threat to SDG 3 because cancer treatment is very expensive. Chemotherapy and radiation is beyond the means of the ordinary person. A lot of people are dying because of these cancers. Among the many types of cancers, we have the cervical cancer. I cannot blame people but our culture does not encourage people to open up with cervical cancer. In our culture, women abhor the practice of going for testing every three years. The process requires a woman lying on the bed with her legs open and they insert a certain instrument to check if she has cervical cancer. The majority of clinics and hospitals in the rural areas are far from where people live.
Women also need to be properly enlightened on the threats of these cancers so that we may be on our way to achieve the aims and objectives of SDG 3 by 2030. It is not only women who suffer from cancer, men suffer from rectum colon and prostate cancers too. In fact, there are too many cancers to mention. Government should also conscientise the people on the need to practice health diet. Once people have more money, they believe that for them to show that they are affluent; they show off by going to Chicken Inn and buy fast foods every day. The consumption of too much cooking oil every day is the injection of cancer. Government should come up with programmes to enlighten our people so that they should resort to the traditional foods that our grandparents used to eat. Things like finger millet et cetera, we must revert to our traditional foods because a long time ago, we did not have cancer. There is cancer now because of the food that we eat. Fruits are sprayed with chemicals so that they may not be attacked by pests. So, if you consume a fruit without washing it properly, you will have ingested the chemicals that would have been sprayed on the fruit.
Government can save a lot of money by educating its people to eat a healthy diet. Tuberculosis has also killed a lot of people and those who are HIV positive are more prone to TB attack. There is a Parliamentary caucus on TB that was formed; I believed it helps in highlighting the effects of TB or the creation of its awareness. Our people need to know how they should handle a TB patient. One could get TB infection in public transport or crowded areas. Statistics show that TB has killed a lot of people and as Government, we must look into this issue seriously. Once one has TB, they should be quickly taken to hospital so that they receive treatment. The medication required for TB is expensive, and one needs to take a lot of food during treatment. We must consider factors like, does that person have anyone to look after him or her? In what ways is Government assisting such people who will be suffering from TB so as to eradicate its spread to the rest of the people?
There is also a problem with diabetes and it is seriously affecting our people. Tuberculosis patients require a special diet and the drugs are expensive and this tends to affect SDG 3. I have observed that the Minister has continued with his Ministry of Health and Child Care. We believe he was doing quite well and he should look into the issue of people that live with diabetes and ensure that the drugs are affordable. Diabetes can either be hereditary or caused by food. The food that we eat in the hotels, scones, disserts and such other things cause diabetes. I would like to assume that a lot of people will leave this Parliament diabetic. It is important as Parliamentarians that we are educated so that we develop good eating habits and can live longer.
There is also the issue of mental disorders. When I was looking at SDG Number 3, I noticed that there are a lot of mental cases that are now in this country. This is maybe because of economic crisis. If a man has no money, he is not happy because he requires a bit of money so that he can be able to look after the family. Women and children expect to be looked after by men so. So that is why the majority of people suffering from mental disorders are men. This is where the new administration should come in; they should create jobs for our husbands so that mental disorders can be reduced so that we can achieve SDG Number 3. Life must be easier for the men that when they wake up in the morning, they go to work and be able to feed their families so that by 2030, we would have reached the goals of this SDG.
Tobacco, cigarettes, beer and drugs are problematic. Drugs are now easily available all over the country. I saw a woman in Bulawayo saying they had transferred her Form 2 child who was buying tablets for 50 cents. They are very cheap but the use of drugs is detrimental to our country’s development and our children’s education and other issues. Why does it appear that our laws seem to be weak in terms of drug enforcement?
In other countries, they have rehabilitation centres. I will look at South Africa, once cocaine is in the system; one spends six months in a rehabilitation centre getting treated so that one can be weaned off the drug. Everything will be provided for, for free. We should be looking at that direction of the provision of rehabilitation centres. People go to Mozambique and all over where drugs are sold on the streets. As Government, for us to achieve the goals of our SDG 3 by 2030, we should look into all these issues. I believe my time is now up and I have touched on the pertinent issues that would help our policy makers in coming up with policies that benefit our
Zimbabwean people so that they can live a healthy life. I thank you.
HON. SEN. TAWENGWA: Mr. President, I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 7th December, 2017.
MOTION
FIRST REPORT OF THE THEMATIC COMMITTEE ON
PEACE AND SECURITY ON THE PREPAREDNESS OF THE
GRAIN MARKETING BOARD TO HANDLE THE 2016/2017
CROP DELIVERIES AND THE SUCCESS OF THE
COMMAND AGRICULTURE PROGRAMME
Fifth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the First Report of the Thematic Committee on Peace and Security on the Preparedness of the Grain Marketing Board to handle the 2016/2017 Crop Deliveries and the Success of the Command Agriculture Programme.
Question again proposed.
*HON. SEN. SHOKO: Thank you Mr. President. This debate on the preparedness of the grain marketing institutions was done when I got into Parliament. A lot of things were said but I believe that there was an area that was not properly addressed. In my considered view, if success has to be recorded, it will become successful because of the people who will be working there. There are workers at the Grain Marketing Board. There has been reports in the newspapers that some of them had gone for a year without being paid.
My observation is that, because of the deliveries that we are talking about and the bountifulness of this harvest, if the workers are not being paid or have attractive conditions and good salaries, the success of Command Agriculture for that season will be hampered. The majority of cases, if you are not paid, in English we say, ‘you withdraw your labour.’ When I came here, I heard people saying that in the forefront should be the welfare of Hon. Members so that they can work hard and with vigour. So, regarding this issue, if the Grain Marketing Board (GMB) management is not looking into the issue of the welfare of its workers in terms of their remuneration, safety and other working conditions, I believe that this could affect the issue that we are discussing about because they can withdraw their labour and there will be a drawback. The drawback will be such that 20 to 30 tonnes which is supposed to be delivered may not happen because there will be no workers. So it will be important that we discuss about this issue.
The Ministry of Agriculture should look into the welfare of the GMB area so that there will be peace and security. They should ensure that the crop that management receives looks after its workers properly. When we look at the issue of the GMB, once the crops have been grown, they should be brought to the GMB. Is there adequate transport, is the railway functional and if there is no good logistics, it remains a pie in the sky because such things will never reach the GMB.
Mr. President, it is important that when we discuss such issues in this august House, the Executive should heed to the reports that we are giving them and ensure that they are implemented so that we do not have problems in future. We had a good harvest but the crop was not delivered to the GMB. Mr. President, with those words, I believe that the report that was tabled by the Committee in question, if it were followed to the letter and spirit, it would develop our country. There is a saying that a hungry nation is always an angry nation. For SDG 3 to be successful, there is need for food security. Once there is food security, everything will work out well. Mr. President, with those words that I have said in this august House, I thank you.
HON. SEN. TAWENGWA: I move that the debate do now
adjourn.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 7th December, 2017.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE ZIMBABWE DELEGATION TO THE
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON PROMOTING
STAKEHOLDER AND PARLIAMENTARY DIALOGUE ON THE
ARMS TRADE TREATY (ATT)
Sixth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of the Zimbabwe delegation to the International Conference on Promoting
Stakeholder and Parliamentary Dialogue on Arms Trade Treaty.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. TIMVEOS: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MARAVA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 7th December, 2017.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE DELEGATION
TO THE EIGHTH RETREAT OF THE ASSOCIATION OF SENATES,
SHOORA AND EQUIVALENT COUNCILS IN AFRICA AND THE
ARAB WORLD
Eighth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of the Parliament of Zimbabwe Delegation to the Eighth Retreat of the Association of Senates, Shoora and Equivalent Councils in Africa and the Arab World (ASSECAA).
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. SINAMPANDE: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. B. SIBANDA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Thursday, 7th December, 2017.
On the motion of HON. SEN. TAWENGWA, seconded by HON.
SEN. MARAVA, the Senate adjourned at Twenty-Six minutes to Four o’clock p.m.
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Thursday, 7th December, 2017
The Senate met at Half-past Two o’clock p.m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENTS BY THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE
SENATE
NON-ADVERSE REPORT RECEIVED FROM THE
PARLIAMENTARY LEGAL COMMITTEE
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I have received a
Non-Adverse Report from the Parliamentary Legal Committee on all
Statutory Instruments published in the Gazzette during the month of October 2017.
ADVERSE REPORT RECEIVED FROM THE PARLIAMENTARY
LEGAL COMMITTEE
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I also have
received an Adverse Report from the Parliamentary Legal Committee, on Statutory Instrument No. 110 (2017), Presidential Powers Temporary
Measures, Extension of State Liabilities Act to the Assets of Chitungwiza Municipality Regulations 2017.
CHANGES TO THE STANDING RULES AND ORDERS
COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I wish to inform
the Senate of changes to the membership of the Committee on Standing Rules and Orders where Hon. Sen. Shiri replaces Hon. Sen. Masuku following her appointment as Minister of State for Bulawayo Metropolitan Province.
STATE OF SENATORS AND PROPOTIONAL REPRESENTATION
MEMBERS OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMLBY IN THE CDF
COMMITTEES
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I wish to clarify a
misunderstanding that has come to our attention on the state of Senators and Proportional Representation (PR) Members of the National
Assembly in the Constituency Development Committees. Senators and
PR Members of Parliament are ex-officio members of the constituency Development Committees by virtue of being Members of Parliament, elected under a party list system of proportional representation. In other words, they hold membership to such committees by right of their offices and promotions, eminent positions. Senators and PR Members are therefore members of all Constituency Development Committees following under their jurisdiction in terms of Article 9 (2) and (3) of the CDF Constitution. They have full voting rights as Members and are accorded the same participatory rights as other members of the CDF. So, you are expected to attend the Committees whenever there are meetings because you are full members of that Committee.
PRESENTATION OF THE 2018 NATIONAL BUDGET
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I wish to inform
the Senate that the Minister of Finance and Economic Planning will today, Thursday 7th December, 2017 at 3 o’clock p.m. present the 2018 National Budget in the National Assembly. The Senate will view the presentation from the television screens in this Senate Chamber.
HON. SEN. MLOTSHWA: On a point of order Madam
President. I would like clarity because it is like you are saying two things. You are saying senators are ex-officio Members and at the same time you are saying, they have voting rights in all the constituencies. I do not understand it.
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: When you are an
ex-fficio member and the Constitution does not actually say as an exofficio member you cannot vote, automatically it is a given that you have voting rights. So, according to the Constitution of the CDF, you do have full voting rights. Mind you, this money is not going to be put in individual Members of the House of Assembly’s accounts. As a CDF, there is going to be established bank accounts and Parliament will put money into that bank account. As a member of that Committee, you will have a right to have a voice as to how and where that money is going to be used.
HON. SEN. MLOTSHWA: It will never happen
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: What do you
mean it will never happen? If you do not go to the meetings – it is not just the Members of Parliament who are going to be members of this committee. Actually, I want to urge you to read the Constitution of this CDF. This Committee is not just made up of Members of Parliament; it will have other persons from the Constituencies. It will be the Member of the National Assembly, the Senate – as you know you cover three, four or five constituencies – that means you are going to be a member on each one of those that fall under you. If they are three or four, you are going to be a member of those three or four and you will be expected to have an input into how that money is used. You do not have to worry, it is quite different from the previous one. I know the older Senators who have been in the 7th Parliament know what happened, this is totally different, the money is controlled from Parliament. If I may say, we have the Chairperson right here. So, the Member of Parliament is not going to just do what he wants with that money. The Committee has to agree and Parliament has to go and see whether you all agree as to where that money should go; whether it is going to go to the refurbishment of the classroom, refurbishment of the school or to the refurbishment of the clinics. So, please Senators, it is your right. Make sure you sit in on all those Committees so that you are also part of what is going to take place.
It is quite different from what happened during the Seventh Parliament. You are more empowered this time as Senators.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: On a point of order Madam President. It is really disappointing because at the Standing Rules and Orders, the last meeting that we had, this issue was deliberated on and it was explained. Finally, it was agreed that an MP is an MP, whether it is a proportional Member or a Senator, they remain an MP. As a result, we have more than 350 MPs here who are liable to get the CDF and the same issue was discussed when we were in Victoria Falls. It was agreed upon that the issue is over. The MPs who were there, I think they can witness. I read that Constitution, it says that Senators and Proportional Representation are ex-officio members. An ex-officio member, from the little knowledge that I have is just an ex-officio member. You do not have the voting right and you do not have any say on that. They can even do it alone without us and we cannot report anywhere.
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: Hon. Senator, I
explained the legalities of the ex-officio. How else can I put it? You are ex-officio but you have voting rights. If it were stated in the
Constitution that ex-officio means you have no voting rights, then you would not but it is not stated, so you have the rights. You have to exercise your rights, please do not run away from your rights. Exercise your right and help build the constituencies that you cover. As for what was agreed at SROC and at Victoria Falls, right now we are looking at the 2017 Budget. So this is what is happening in as far as the 2017 Budget is concerned. Please, let us be found doing something. We want to come back after 2018 as Senators. If you are going to be missing – please be there, be involved. The constituents that you represent need to know that you as their senators had something to say about the way this money is going to be used. It is not going to any person’s account, the money is going into your committee’s accounts.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: Anyway, I just rest my case but I am not happy.
+THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: I hope we are
together. We want people from our constituencies to know that we are members of the committees and that we contributed. *We want our people to know that we represent them whether they have rural constituencies or urban. What we want is to see where the money is going. We are there as MPs, we sit in committees and we have other people from the communities who will be members of that committee. So we will work together as a team but what is important is to value and ensure that your voice has been heard, you were part of what was done so that they do not think that the Senator did not do anything for them. People in our constituencies should know that we represent them as we work together with the elected Members of the National Assembly.
HON. SEN. MLOTSHWA: But the Chairpersons will develop wings.
+THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: The money is
controlled by Parliament; it is not one person who is going to control the funds.
HON. SEN. MLOTSHWA: The money was not deposited into anyone’s account. It was deposited into the CDF account because they were supposed to open an account, but it created problems in terms of
that.
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: It is different.
HON. SEN. MLOTSHWA: There is nothing new because you were to open an account even in the Seventh Parliament and it was controlled by Parliamentary Affairs. The attitudes and actions that are going to be in the constituencies – you know the Chairpersons of the CDFs are going to develop wings, I tell you. It will be difficult when the ex-officio part is not explained in the document.
THE HON. PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE: If you want to
advocate for failure, we shall fail. If you want to advocate for success, we shall succeed. It is up to you as an individual Senator. That is all I can say because it is clear; you have to be involved, you have a voting right, exercise you right please. Thank you.
On the motion of THE MINISTER OF HEALTH AND CHILD CARE (HON. SEN. DR. PARIRENYATWA), the Senate adjourned
at Ten Minutes to Three o’clock p.m. until Tuesday, 19th December, 2017.