adminPresident challenges ruling on by-elections
Daniel Nemukuyu
Senior Court Reporter
PRESIDENT Mugabe is challenging the decision by the High Court in Bulawayo directing him to gazette a date for by-elections in three vacant House of Assembly constituencies.
Nkayi South, Bulilima East and Lupane East constituencies fell vacant after their respective legislators were dismissed from the MDC.
The trio subsequently lost their parliamentary positions.
The former legislators Abednico Bhebhe, Njabuliso Mguni and Norman Mpofu instituted the court action after declaring their interest to contest in the constituencies as independent candidates.
Justice Nicholas Ndou in October last year directed the President to ensure the by-elections for the three vacant posts in Nkayi South, Bulilima East and Lupane East are held despite the financial challenges Government is facing.
The President, through Justice and Legal Affairs Minister Patrick Chinamasa, submitted in the High Court proceedings that there were more than three constituencies awaiting by-elections.
This, he argued, required US$38 million.
Mangoma faces contempt charges
Zvamaida Murwira
Senior Reporter
PARLIAMENT has started preparing papers to charge Energy and Power Development Minister Elton Mangoma for contempt after he defied an invitation to appear before it.
Minister Mangoma refused to appear before a Senate Thematic Committee on Peace and Security on three occasions to explain issues regarding entities falling under his ministry.
Committee chairperson and Rushinga Senator Damien Mumvuri (Zanu-PF) confirmed the development, saying legislators had been riled by the minister’s “arrogant conduct”.
“We have raised a complaint against Minister Mangoma after we invited him three times but he failed to turn up,” he said.
“We have since engaged Parliament’s secretariat to initiate the process required in terms of the Standing Orders.”
Sen Mumvuri said the committee will invoke provisions of the Standing Orders that would compel Minister Mangoma to appear before it for the last time.
If he fails, they will approach Senate President Cde Edna Madzongwe to set up a Priviledges Committee that would conduct a hearing.
Sen Mumvuri said their committee, which is due to meet today, would approach Cde Madzongwe during a sitting and lay out their grounds to show that a prima facie case against the minister exists.
Zanu-PF explains DCCs ban
Takunda Maodza
Senior Reporter
ZANU-PF is dispatching a high-powered delegation led by secretary for administration Cde Didymus Mutasa to all its provinces to explain the party’s decision to disband district co-ordinating committees.
President Mugabe, who is the party’s First Secretary, announced the Politburo decision to disband the DCCs at a Central Committee meeting in Harare last week.
The Central Committee has since endorsed the decision to do away with the DCCs.
Some powerful Zanu-PF members were allegedly manipulating the DCCs causing unnecessary tension and divisions in the revolutionary party.
Zanu-PF spokesperson Cde Rugare Gumbo yesterday confirmed a delegation led by Cde Mutasa will visit the provinces soon.
“The party would like to advise all Zanu-PF provinces that a team headed by the secretary for administration, Cde D N E Mutasa, will be visiting all the provinces to explain to party members the decision to disband District Coordinating Committees. The dates for the visits will be advised in due course,” he said.
Cde Mutasa also confirmed the development but said full details on the pending visits would be announced at the appropriate time.
Announcing the disbanding of the DCCs last week, President Mugabe said: “As we discussed the matter, we decided that the Central Committee should look at the issue of DCCs and we came to the conclusion that they are serving a divisive process. They are an organ which must go. The Politburo came to the conclusion that DCCs must be repealed. A recommendation would be made to the Central Committee so that it could remove the organ called the DCC from the party.”
Lobbying for S Africa’s Dlamini-Zuma heats up
PRETORIA — Ministers from Sadc countries met in Pretoria yesterday as lobbying for Home Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma to lead the African Union heated up.
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Musona quits Warriors
Robson SharukoSenior Sports Editor
ZIMBABWE’S talismanic forward, Knowledge Musona, has quit international football in the wake of the match-fixing row that erupted in the countdown to the 2013 Nations Cup qualifier against Burundi in Harare last month.
FC Platinum fire Rahman Gumbo
From Paul Mundandi in ZvishavaneRAHMAN GUMBO’S flirtation with ambitious Premiership side, FC Platinum, ended yesterday when the coach was fired after just one season in charge of the team.
Rahman, who just managed to survive the axe two months ago after a poor run, finally ran out of luck when he lost his job.