admin‘Gen Mujuru unhappy with ZRP security’
Lovemore Chikova and Innocent Ruwende
GENERAL Solomon Mujuru was not happy with three policemen on guard at his farmhouse the night he died.
The trio would reportedly fire guns at will and assaulted a farm worker.
Gen Mujuru’s maid, Ms Rosemary Short, said relations between her boss and the policemen had deteriorated to an extent that he stopped her from giving them food.
She said constables Obert Mark, Augustinos Chinyoka and Lazarus Handikatari disturbed peace at the farm.
Ms Short was testifying at the ongoing inquest into the death of Gen Mujuru in a fire on August 15 last year.
The hearing is being presided over by provi-ncial magistrate Mr Walter Chikwanha at the Harare Magistrates’ Courts.
“The police officers’ relations with Gen Mu-juru were sour,” said Ms Short.
29 Parliamentary constituencies now vacant
Harare Bureau
Twenty-nine Parliamentary constituencies now stand vacant since the institution of the inclusive Government although the GPA’s 12-month moratorium on by-elections expired in September 2009.
Assistant Clerk of Parliament Mr Johane Gandiwa said the seats became vacant after legislators died, were elevated or expelled from the House of Assembly.
“We have 17 vacant seats in the House of Assembly and 12 seats in the Senate. Eleven legislators from the House of Assembly died while political parties expelled four parliamentarians while two others were elevated to top posts creating the vacancies,” Mr Gandiwa said.
In total Zanu-PF now has 16 vacant seats, eight of which are in the House of Assembly. MDC-T has eight vacancies of which four are in the House of Assembly.
Hundreds bid Moyo farewell
Chronicle Reporter
HUNDREDS of people from across the country yesterday converged on Esigodini to pay their last respects to the late Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) current affairs editor, Freedom Moyo.
Moyo died in the early hours of Tuesday week from injuries he sustained when the vehicle he was driving rammed into a haulage truck that had stopped in the middle of the road in Belvedere in the early hours of last Saturday. He was 37.
Tourism assembly to be of world standards
Victoria Falls Reporter
THE proposed multi-purpose convention centre earmarked for Victoria Falls to accommodate delegates to the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) General Assembly 2013 will be of world standards, an official said yesterday.
Work on Nkomo statue to resume
Chronicle Reporter
THE contractor in charge of the re-erection of the late Vice President Dr Joshua Nkomo’s statue in Bulawayo is expected to move to the site next week to resume the project amid reports the Ministry of Finance has agreed to release funds for its completion.
Dr Nkomo’s statue has been mired in controversy after it was pulled down before its official unveiling in 2010 following strong objections from the Nkomo family and the Bulawayo community who felt the statue did not capture the exact attributes of the late Father Zimbabwe.
The project resumed again last year in July following a directive by the Zanu-PF Politburo to re-erect the statue at the intersection of Main Street and 8th Avenue in Bulawayo.
In an interview on condition of anonymity an official from the Ministry of Home Affairs said the Government was finalising paperwork on the payment of the contractor before work starts.
“The money has been released but there is outstanding paperwork about the payment of the contractor. We are planning to move to the site next week. Very soon you will be seeing some activity there,” said the official.
Man rapes prostitute, falls into deep sleep
Midlands Bureau Chief
A Gweru man who allegedly twice raped a self-confessed prostitute literally surrendered his freedom when he immediately fell asleep just after committing the offence, police have said.
Trial date for MLF members set
Court Reporter
THE three members of Mthwakazi Liberation Front (MLF), a pressure group-cum-political party calling for the separation of Matabeleland from the rest of the country, who are facing treason charges, were yesterday indicted for trial at the High Court on 7 February.
Battered image haunts Zifa
By Ricky Zililo
ZIFA board member finance Elliot Kasu believes the battered image of his organisation has contributed to perennial money problems that they are facing.
Kasu said Zifa was committed to cleansing the association’s image, which was failing to attract corporate support.
ZBCtv to screen Afcon matches live
Sports Reporter
The country’s broadcaster ZBCtv has confirmed that it will be beaming live most of the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) matches.
EDITORIAL COMMENT: Extend mobile phone coverage to remote areas
Mobile telecommunication has made great inroads since the introduction of the multiple currency system in 2009.