InfocusNews 20 - 24 Sept 2021
Civil society organisations call for immediate electoral reforms
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IMBABWE joined the rest of the world in commemorating the International Day of Democracy last week with calls for immediate electoral reforms for citizens to fully enjoy their rights. The International Day of Democracy is celebrated around the world on 15 September each year. This year, commemorations ran under the theme “Strengthening democratic resilience in the face of future crises”. The political environment in the country is surrounded by
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force, coercion and selective application of rules and procedures that limit democracy. Elections Resource Centre (ERC) Rudo Motsi said the goal of democracy is to provide citizens with an environment conducive for open participation, free, fair and credible elections and a fair playing field in which political opponents have equal opportunities to reach various constituencies. “Unfortunately, in modern Zimbabwe, more than 90 wards and 26 constituencies are unrepresented, without councillors or Members of Parliament. As a result, the country cannot continue to com-
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memorate days such as the International Day of Democracy while democracy is not acknowledged,” said Motsi. “Calls for electoral reforms and the reinstatement of by-elections do not imply a push for regime change but are key for true representative democracy.” She added that “The ERC urges the Second Republic to fulfill the pledges made during the 2018 election, the most important of which is the implementation of electoral reforms. The goal of the reforms is to improve the democracy embodied by the constitution.” The Zimbabwe Election Support Network (ZESN) on the other hand said lack of democracy can lead to lack of rights or a voice, and this impacts on human rights as set out by the United Nations. “This day comes amid the battle with the COVID-19 pandemic which has led to fatalities, surge in infections and the closure of so many multi-sectoral spaces. Democracy has also suffered a huge blow especially in Zimbabwe; with the indefinite suspension of by-elections and other electoral activities. This has led to the quarantining of democracy and prevention of equal participation of citizens in democratic electoral and governance processes,” said ZESN. . “This year’s International Day of Democracy presents ZESN with the opportunity to reiterate its calls
InfocusNews for the government to uphold the principle of holding periodic elections by universal suffrage and to put in place measures that ensure inclusive participation in elections, especially of women, People with Disabilities (PWDs), and youths in
Zimbabwe. The organization said despite the fact that women constitute the demographic majority, and youths account for the largest voting population, their participation, especially as candidates, in elections
has been very low.” ZESN added that lack of electoral reforms have resulted in the limited representation and participation of these important constituencies in the governance of the country. been availed so far,” said Minister Mutsvangwa. She also noted that out of a total school enrolment of 4.6 million, the number of COVID-19-positive cases detected is insignificant.
Zimbabwe recording decrease in COVID-19 cases
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IMBABWE has been recording a decrease in Covid-19 new cases and deaths over the past week a development which experts say may mislead people into complacency and perceived immunity which may destroy the gains made so far. Since its introduction in February, the national vaccination against Covid-19 has seen more people being inoculated which has been commended in the region. Data from the World Health Organisation for full vaccinations per 100 people shows Zimbabwe is one of 13 countries who managed to vaccinate at least 10 percent of its adult population by September. Cases in schools continue to rise and the Government has said the facebook.com/wildtrustzim |
number is insignificant and that a majority of the cases are asymptomatic. In her post-cabinet briefing on Tuesday, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Monica Mutsvangwa said Cabinet was pleased to note the number of people in need of hospitalization had been on the decrease during the past 21 days. “We are happy to note that cases decreased significantly over the last 21 days and continue declining, due to the effective COVID-19 control measures and protocols put in place by the Government. Treasury has also consistently provided the much-needed financial resources for the mitigation measures, with ZW$34.2 billion having
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“All cases are being well-managed in line with the Standard Guidelines for the Coordinated Prevention and Management of COVID-19 at all learning institutions in Zimbabwe. Furthermore, most cases among learners are asymptomatic or have only mild symptoms. Accordingly, the Cabinet resolved that schools will remain open. Learners who are isolated will be provided with alternative learning platforms,” she added. Local health expert Dr Rita Dlodlo said community members had done well in getting vaccinated although they should be careful of complacency in light of the emerging variant. She said as people continue getting vaccinated they should not stop practicing the recommended guidelines. “We commend residents who went out in their numbers to get vaccinated and although we are not closer to reaching our population immunity which we will achieve when at least 80 percent of our adults are vaccinated. This means we cannot abandon all
InfocusNews the public health guidelines like washing hands, practicing social distancing and masking up as we are not yet out of the woods,” said Dr Dlodlo. One of Bulawayo residents Sinqobile Mpofu said she was worried about the carelessness being dis-
played by people in public spaces despite the prevalence of Covid-19. “We are happy that cases are down but we are worried because people think being vaccinated gives them immunity against Covid-19. People are tired of wearing masks properly or sanitizing all the time
which means our risk is as high as the number of people who are getting vaccinated. I think the Government, through the police, should ensure we continue complying so that we are not hit by another wave in the near future,” she said. gender mainstreaming in all their operations and activities. The workshop was facilitated by Bulawayo City Council Gender Focal Person, Audrey Manyemwe. Manyemwe highlighted three thematic areas which include gender equality in employment, policy formulation and governance issues.
Umzingwane RDC Gender Committee capacitated on gender mainstreaming
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mzingwane Rural District Council (RDC) Chief Executive Officer Ndumiso Mpofu on Tuesday highlighted that there is need for new strategies and implementation of policies and legislation that address the needs of both women and men at all stages of the local authority’s administration and service delivery provision.
shop for Umzingwane RDC that was conducted by Women’s Institute for Leadership Development (WILD). The workshop was attended by representatives from the Umzingwane RDC, Ministry of Women Affairs, Community, Small and Medium Enterprise development, social services, councillors and the Public Service Commission.
Mpofu said this during a Gender Committee capacitation work-
The workshop sought to capacitate stakeholders on the importance of
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“Gender equality is the cornerstone of inclusive growth. Providing equal access to public, economic opportunities as well as including both men and women is vital to accomplishing a more sustainable economy and improving national well-being,” said Manyemwe The second thematic area which was discussed focused on gender in local economic development as well as procurement within the local authority. “Taking into account the needs, priorities and opinions of both women and men from their respective localities, ensuring that both benefit equally from social change and economic growth, and that gender inequalities are eliminated, are all essential for the success of any local economic development aimed at creating decent
InfocusNews work opportunities in the local authority,” highlighted Manyemwe. Speaking on the importance of gender mainstreaming, Umzingwane ward 16 councilor, Patson Sibanda highlighted that in societies where women’s participation in public affairs is severely restricted by tradition, economic development is bound to collapse. The third thematic area which the
workshop focused on was gender mainstreaming in infrastructural development, health issues and ending gender-based violence. Participants noted that for infrastructure development to support equal access to services, a gender mainstreaming approach must be incorporated throughout the infrastructure lifecycle and critically
during the design stage. Participants were in agreement that gender-responsive infrastructure design has the power to address gender inequalities and empower women by responding to diverse needs in society and can accelerate the socio-economic mobility of women, girls and other underserved or disadvantaged groups. “It is of paramount importance for the local authority to ensure that the gender policy is not only on paper but it is fully and effectively implemented. This will assist staff and stakeholders to apply organisational progress and results in line with gender equality,” said Ngoma Siphilisiwe Ncube, who was facilitating the training highlighted that organisations should have gender policies as they are key in addressing developmental issues in communities.
Lupane Local Board encouraged to operationalise Gender Policy
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omen’s Institute for Leadership Development (WILD) facilitated a Gender Policy Institutionalisation meeting with personnel from Lupane Local Board. Participants who attended the meeting shared mutual understanding on the need for organisations and institutions to have
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policies which provide a roadmap for their day-to-day operations. Speaking at the meeting, WILD Programs Manager Permanent Ngoma highlighted that there is a need for the local authority to fully implement the gender policy as many good organisational policies fail to work because of failure to effectively implement.
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“A gender policy is very helpful in accelerating efforts to address gender inequalities across all key pillars and strategic pillars of the local authority. These policies address gender inequalities which is key in addressing issues such as poverty,” highlighted Ncube. She went on to share strategies that the local authorities can employ so as to ensure effective implementation of the gender policy. “There is a need for the local authorities to have a gender action plan and a monitoring and evaluation framework. This will ensure
InfocusNews that the gender policy is fully and effectively implemented. This will lead to gender-sensitive initiatives, equal access to resources, and opportunities for the development of
society,” said Ncube. The participants at the meeting were in agreement that there is need for establishing pro-gender and pro-poor institutional struc-
tures that constitute the gender machinery and to allocate clear responsibilities in order to support the effective implementation of the gender policy. censors in each bay that will be checking if the parking bays are occupied, and they will be feeding the information to the command center which will be keeping track of the vehicle details,” he elaborated.
BCC explains parking system to stakeholders
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he Bulawayo City Council (BCC) in partnership with a private company Tendy Three Investments (TTI) conducted a stakeholder meeting on the 17th of September. The meeting was aimed at briefing stakeholders on the City Parking Management project that is meant to be carried out in the Central Business District. The meeting was attended by the Deputy Mayor, Council representatives, representatives from TTI as well as other stakeholders. Opening up the meeting was Mr. Sibanda a representative from BCC, who gave a brief background of the project. In his presentation he revealed that “the City Parking
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Management project is supposed to run for six years initially then there will be an additional four years if the project proves to be prolific.” “The project is aimed at enhancing security for motorists through the use of CCTV cameras at parking bays and it will also provide employment for the Bulawayo residents as they will be employing parking marshals,” he said. TTI Operations Manager Mr. L Mabuza, explained how the project will operate. He explained that parking bays will be monitored by parking marshals, who will be issuing out parking tickets to motorists. “They will also be assisted by
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During the plenary session Mr Tshuma a representative from Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association posed a question that “if the payment of the bays is done on an hourly basis what then happens to those who spend the whole day at the CBD as well as public transport vehicles. In his response, Mr. Mabuza said “those who work at the CBD will have to make a monthly payment plan with the BCC while public transport vehicles will have designated parking areas hence they have to park at their designated parking bays that way they won’t have to pay but if they are found parking in other bays then they will have to pay.” Another question was from M. Sibanda from Emthonjeni Women’s Forum who sought information on existing policies to ensure that women equally benefit from the system in terms of being employed as parking Marshals. Mr Mbuza explained that women will be given the same opportunities as men in terms of employment.
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Community Voices
Speaking out on Gender Based Violence
Click on the image to watch A representative from Esigodini Residents Association says parents are contributing to GBV among adolescents as they hide the perpetrator and conceal child abuse. She encourages citizens to report such cases of abuse.
Community Voices on GBV
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This is one of the residents from Esigodini in Habane Township. She was part of the people that participated in the GBV film screening that was conducted by WILD last week. In this video, she shares that when rape cases appear within the community, the community should play a key role in ensuring that rape is reported to the police. She also highlights lessons from the film by @Skasebata. The film was produced by Magamba Network and Accountability Lab in order to raise awareness on Gender based violence.
Community Voices there that there is power in knowing what you want and dedicating yourself to acquiring it and most importantly, that if opportunity doesn’t come to you just build a door. I am in the process of sourcing for funds to create a brand for my petroleum jelly.
Entrepreneur sets eyes on petroleum jelly production Ever since I was young, I have always had an entrepreneurial spirit and mindset it has always resided in me and my dream had always been to have my own cosmetic line. In the process of chasing my dreams I joined the Jays training programme where they train young women to make different products which includes making liquid soap and petroleum jelly. To me that was an inspiration as I saw this as an opportunity that was going to help me grow as an independent young woman and as a passionate creator this was actually a chance for me to accomplish something for myself and that is when I decided grab that one opportunity that was going to change my life and at the same time lead me to the ac-
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tualization of my life long dream, that is to start my own cosmetic line.
By Gugulethu Dlodlo Besides just having my own cosmetic line, my goal is to use this brand to help my community. I am from Tekwane and we have a challenge because if we have to buy basic commodities, we have to go to Plumtree town, so I think if I can take my products to them then they will not have to travel to town to buy petroleum jelly. Lastly, with my product, I do not want it to be just another brand of petroleum jelly at the shops but I want it to come out as proof to myself and other aspiring entrepreneurs out
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Cyber bullying impacting teenagers negatively We are facing various issues in our community but I think there is a serious issue that is affecting not only me as an individual but rather a greater public, which is Cyber bullying. Cyber bullying is a serious issue and it has become increasingly common especially among teenagers, as the digital sphere has expanded.
By Sandra Ncube As a victim of cyber bul-
Community Voices lying I would like to raise awareness to some people out there who have been through the same thing or who are currently going through it but do not have the courage to confidently speak out about the issue, or do not know how to deal with the situation. Personally my story is a story of conquest focusing on how I managed to deal with cyberbullying at school. It was not easy because it seriously affected me
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mentally and socially because even up to today my social life is a bit derailed. However I can say that I am grateful that I had friends and family who gave me support during that time. One of my friends introduced me to the Soleil Levant Foundation that deals with issues of mental health and I am grateful that they have counsellors who advised me on how to deal with the situation. So I would like to recom-
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mend that wherever possible we should spread awareness on cyber bullying because many people are victims and they do not know how to deal with it. I also like to encourage people to look into the Cyber Security and Data Protection Bill which provides information on the consequences of cyber bullying. Basically I think we should normalise spreading awareness on such issues and share the information where ever possible.
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Electoral Information Blitz
Picture Credit: @ZECZim
ZEC ZITF stand open for citizens to register to vote
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xhibitors and visitors who are attending the Zimbabwe International Trader Fair (ZITF) are permitted to register to vote as the electoral body increases efforts to get citizens to register to vote. In an interview during the ZITF, the newly elected Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) spokesperson Commissioner Joyce Kazembe, said in the near future members of the public will access voter registration from mobile offices. “I think it’s quite interesting that we have people who are taking advantage of our stand to access facebook.com/wildtrustzim |
voter education and registration at our stand. We have seen a handful coming to register but our main message is people should ensure they are ready to register as we are planning a mobile registration blitz which will soon be rolled out,” said Comm Kazembe. This follows an outcry over limited ZEC offices scattered countrywide, which has resulted in a low turnout especially in Matabeleland region. The Commission is exhibiting at the ZITF under the theme, “Voter Registration and Delimitation under COVID-19 environment” and also conducting voter registration,
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inspection and education. “We are aware that a majority of members cannot access our offices as they are located far from them but soon we will do mobile voter registration. For now we urge them, especially youths who will be 18 by 2023 to ensure that they get identity cards so that they can register when it’s time,” she added. She said the office of the Registrar General is trying to document as many people as possible before the voter registration blitz so that they also benefit. “We should be getting ready for the blitz by ensuring we have
identity cards and we urge members of the public to go to registrar general offices to get their documents ready. Everyone will access the voter register one way or the other and those who can approach any of our offices countrywide and register to vote even if they will be moving to a totally different place come 2023,” said Comm Kazembe.
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Citizens entering the ZITF are expected to produce valid PCR tests for COVID-19. Comm Kazembe assured members of the public that they will all have a chance to register to vote before the delimitation process as the election body is mulling a voter registration blitz.
In some instances, members of the public are forced to travel more than 100km to the nearest ZEC office just to register to vote and because of financial challenges. Meanwhile, ZEC offices at Windsor park in Famona are still open for voter registration.
Your vote on the ballot is your SUPER POWER
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able to travel, mobilise members of the public and eventually go to Plumtree,” she says. Janet Sibanda from Nyamandlovu says their nearest ZEC office is in Bulawayo and they too are just waiting for the elections body to avail more registration points so that they register.
Rural women unhappy over inaccessibility of voter registration points
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HE ongoing voter registration in different parts of the country is not accessible in rural areas where a majority of Zimbabweans live, as villagers have to pay at least R200 to access the nearest Zimbabwe Electoral Commission offices. In an interview with INFOCUS news, Madlambudzi (Bulilima Ward 12) councillor Jabeti Mlalazi said villagers from her area are yet to go and register as they need R200 to travel to Plumtree Town where there is the nearest ZEC offices. She says Covid-19 has affected uptake of voter registration as people had lost income and were no longer frequenting towns unlike before. “We are yet to go and register because so far we have one office
which requires one to use R200 just on transport. We are yet to mobilise people to register as well, hoping that ZEC will in turn decentralize their offices so that more people are motivated to register,” says Clr Mlalazi. Voter registration precedes the delimitation process which will determine the number of constituencies and local authority seats a city, town or district. With the process set for next year after census results, members of the public only have a few months to register as voters so that their areas do not lose seats. “A majority of our people are struggling with basics and cannot divert funds for food and school fees to transport. We just hope that now that Covid-19 restrictions have been relaxed a bit, we will be
“Some of us registered and it’s a matter of going to check our names on the voters’ roll and ensure all is set but hundreds are yet to access the service. Our major challenge is we can no longer afford to travel to Bulawayo daily due to transport costs,” says Sibanda. “We are not sure that we will have enough time to mobilise people and have them register on time but we hope these delays will not affect us during the delimitation process. “ ZEC has said the delimitation will be undertaken in three phases which will be completed in two years before the 2023 elections. Figtree Councillor Ngonidzashe Chemhuru says their major challenge is lack of birth certificates for their youths who need identity cards to register as voters. “We also have one ZEC office in Plumtree and we need R30-R50 one way, which is not affordable for many of our community members. Our major challenge remains identity cards because our youths have no birth certificates to access those and we wish this may be addressed
too so that they also register,” she says. “So far only a handful are even
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talking about registering to vote and it’s kind of discouraging although we know that things will
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improve especially if ZEC avails mobile offices and ensures that our youths access identity cards.”
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Electoral Information Blitz
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Electoral Information Blitz
VOTERS’ ROLL LINK facebook.com/wildtrustzim |
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