MOTHERS FAIL TO ACCESS PMTCT
By Ndumeya Moyo (Local Governance Officer)
BULAWAYO - Scores of pregnant women on Bulawayo are finding it difficult to commence Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission medication due to the exorbitant maternity fees demanded at the Bulawayo City Council clinics.
According to the latest council minutes, the local authority is currently charging US$50 for maternity fees, this has become a deterrent for many pregnant mothers as they are unable to pay it all at one go. This in turn deters many from testing for HIV and further accessing PMTCT for the unborn babies.
Councilors raised concerns at Full Council meeting held on the 2nd of June 2010 that there was an increase in the number of children who have been commenced on A.R.Vs because their mothers had failed to access PMTCT services. They said that this is disturbing and measures should be taken to ensure that mothers could pay this amount in installments and at the same time allowing them to access treatment. It was felt that Council cannot allow a situation where people are sent back home without testing and accessing treatment. The Director of Health and the Chairperson of the Health, Housing and Education committee have since been tasked to come up with mechanisms that will enable expecting mothers to pay in installments.
COMMENT:
The actual cost of the maternity service at a Council Clinic is US$78 but currently Council is charging US$50 and subsidizes the US$28. In as much as we might call for the further reduction of the charge, residents should be aware that further reductions might jeopardize the quality of such an essential service. However, it will be commendable for Council to agree on terms of payment for the expecting mothers so as to allow them to get tested and access PMTCT for their unborn babies. This information comes barely a week after the Chronicle reported that the number of HIV and AIDS related deaths is at 1300 per week.
Habakkuk Trust has been advocating for the Access to Treatment for People Living with HIV and AIDS and the HIV and AIDS Indaba that was held in March 2009 saw the Bulawayo City Council starting to implement a two month old resolution that was enabling People Living With HIV and AIDS not to pay consultation fees when going for refill their drugs.
US$7 MILLION FOR MTSHABEZI PIPELINE?
BULAWAYO - The government has allocated US$7 million for the Mtshabezi pipeline but it is worrying that to date nothing has happened on site.
Councilors raised concern about the US$7Million that was given by the Government for the Mtshabezi pipeline to be connected to Umzingwane saying nothing has been done to date. Councilor Israel Mabaleka said there is need for an action plan to guide the process. He added that there is need to know the exact location of the money, suggesting further that it could be put in unit trusts and generate more for Council. Another Councillor and the Deputy Mayor Councilor Amen Mpofu concurred saying that the status of the project on paper should symbolize what is on the ground.
A total of US$21 Million is required for the success of this project but only US$7 Million was allocated. Councilor Gideon Mangena the Acting Chairperson for the Future Water Supplies and Water Action Committee concluded this issue by saying that Bulawayo needs water like yesterday, however Council has limited jurisdiction especially with regards the Mtshabezi pipeline. He said this is entirely the business of Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA) as it deals with bulk water. In as much as the concerned Committee and Council might push for the success of the issue their hands are tied and short. The Mayor Councilor Thaba Moyo said there is need to push the issue further and that the US$7 Million that was availed is pathetic, there is need to engage Council to engage the residents at ward level to start lobbying the Members of Parliament and Senators from this region to put pressure to the concerned Ministry as soon as possible.
COMMENT:
Access to clean and adequate water has been a critical advocacy issue that has come up in nearly all the urban and rural communities that Habakkuk Trust works with. The Bulawayo Advocacy Action Teams have pushed the water issue to an Indaba that was held in 2008 where various stakeholders who also included the City Council, Civic Society organisations, the Academia, residents and Water experts debated on the possible lasting solutions to the perennial water problems bedeviling the City. Though the Indaba resolved that the Mtshabezi - Umzingwane pipeline needed to be sped up, subsequent national budget allocations have seen little funds allocated to the project. The organisation has even engaged the Minister of Water Resources on the issue in order for the Ministry to give priority to the project.
Once completed the project is expected to increase the water supply to Zimbabwe’s second largest city and this will in turn catapult investment in the once Zimbabwe’s industrial hub.
Monday, June 7, 2010
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
BULAWAYO POWER STATION TO BE REFURBISHED
By Khumbulani Maphosa – Media and Publications Officer
BULAWAYO – Latest media reports suggest that Zimbabwe’s ZESA Holdings has clinched an agreement with Botswana’s power company, Botswana Power Corporation, which will result in the refurbishment of the derelict and unused Bulawayo Power Station.
Presenting the latest developments to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Mines and Energy, the Zimbabwe Power Company managing director Mr Noah Gwariro, is quoted in the Chronicle revealing that the Intergovernmental agreement will be officially signed on the 15th of May 2010. He further revealed that ‘ a loan agreement will also be signed with Zesa Holdings while BPC and Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company will sign a power purchase agreement.’
After the refurbishment, the power company is expected to produce around 90MW, of which 40MW would be exported to Botswana.
Comment
Habakkuk Trust has been advocating on the issue of power and energy and on 29 September 2008 the organisation held an Indaba on Energy, which was attended by residents, ZESA Regional managers, CSOs, the academia, media personnel and Bulawayo Councillors and Council staff. At this Indaba it was suggested that the power utility (ZETDC) should explore other sources of energy such as wind and solar. Calls were further made for the maximization and refurbishment of all existing electricity generation plants.
The Bulawayo City Council, with support from the residents, challenged ZETDC to hand back the Bulawayo Thermal Power station to the local authority as it had previously run it well.
Bulawayo residents will also be hoping that the refurbishment of the power station will increase the power supply in the city thus boost the industrial and commercial operational capacity which has been adversely affected by long hours of load-shedding.
By Khumbulani Maphosa – Media and Publications Officer
BULAWAYO – Latest media reports suggest that Zimbabwe’s ZESA Holdings has clinched an agreement with Botswana’s power company, Botswana Power Corporation, which will result in the refurbishment of the derelict and unused Bulawayo Power Station.
Presenting the latest developments to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Mines and Energy, the Zimbabwe Power Company managing director Mr Noah Gwariro, is quoted in the Chronicle revealing that the Intergovernmental agreement will be officially signed on the 15th of May 2010. He further revealed that ‘ a loan agreement will also be signed with Zesa Holdings while BPC and Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company will sign a power purchase agreement.’
After the refurbishment, the power company is expected to produce around 90MW, of which 40MW would be exported to Botswana.
Comment
Habakkuk Trust has been advocating on the issue of power and energy and on 29 September 2008 the organisation held an Indaba on Energy, which was attended by residents, ZESA Regional managers, CSOs, the academia, media personnel and Bulawayo Councillors and Council staff. At this Indaba it was suggested that the power utility (ZETDC) should explore other sources of energy such as wind and solar. Calls were further made for the maximization and refurbishment of all existing electricity generation plants.
The Bulawayo City Council, with support from the residents, challenged ZETDC to hand back the Bulawayo Thermal Power station to the local authority as it had previously run it well.
Bulawayo residents will also be hoping that the refurbishment of the power station will increase the power supply in the city thus boost the industrial and commercial operational capacity which has been adversely affected by long hours of load-shedding.
CONSTITUTION MAKING TAKING TOO LONG: RESIDENTS
By Media and Publications Officer
Bulawayo residents have expressed concern that the making of Zimbabwe’s new constitution is taking too long than previously suggested and expected.
According to the Habakkuk Trust results of the Opinion Poll conducted during the recently ended Zimbabwe International Trade Fair, residents who participated in the poll expressed concerns on the tortoise pace with which the process is moving.
‘We need the constitution before elections’ suggested a resident from Killarney. Another resident from Luveve had this to say, ‘The process of writing the new constitution should be speeded up.’ This was concurred by a resident from Richmond who said, ‘the constitution making process must be done at a faster speed. As of the moment the process is non-existent.’ Other residents from Luveve accused the civic society saying, ‘You have been talking about this constitution issue for a long time, its not coming up, you should know why because you talk to these people.’ There are some residents who felt that the problem is that ‘the process is polarised along political lines (ZANU PF vs MDC a resident from Ward 6.
Habakkuk Trust called the COPAC offices today seeking clarity on the delays in the constitution making process and a female COPAC official who refused to identify herself, revealed that there would be a press statement on Friday pertaining to the progress of the constitution making process. This statement, she said, will appear in the Herald and the Chronicle.
COPAC has been issuing numerous conflicting press statements, which have not culminated to practical action. On signing the Global Political Agreement (GPA) the Principals in the agreement had initially agreed to make the constitution making process a top priority.
Habakkuk Trust will continue monitoring and creating awareness around the constitution making process. This is inline with the organisation’s vision of ‘enhancing citizen participation in decision-making processes.’
By Media and Publications Officer
Bulawayo residents have expressed concern that the making of Zimbabwe’s new constitution is taking too long than previously suggested and expected.
According to the Habakkuk Trust results of the Opinion Poll conducted during the recently ended Zimbabwe International Trade Fair, residents who participated in the poll expressed concerns on the tortoise pace with which the process is moving.
‘We need the constitution before elections’ suggested a resident from Killarney. Another resident from Luveve had this to say, ‘The process of writing the new constitution should be speeded up.’ This was concurred by a resident from Richmond who said, ‘the constitution making process must be done at a faster speed. As of the moment the process is non-existent.’ Other residents from Luveve accused the civic society saying, ‘You have been talking about this constitution issue for a long time, its not coming up, you should know why because you talk to these people.’ There are some residents who felt that the problem is that ‘the process is polarised along political lines (ZANU PF vs MDC a resident from Ward 6.
Habakkuk Trust called the COPAC offices today seeking clarity on the delays in the constitution making process and a female COPAC official who refused to identify herself, revealed that there would be a press statement on Friday pertaining to the progress of the constitution making process. This statement, she said, will appear in the Herald and the Chronicle.
COPAC has been issuing numerous conflicting press statements, which have not culminated to practical action. On signing the Global Political Agreement (GPA) the Principals in the agreement had initially agreed to make the constitution making process a top priority.
Habakkuk Trust will continue monitoring and creating awareness around the constitution making process. This is inline with the organisation’s vision of ‘enhancing citizen participation in decision-making processes.’
Monday, May 3, 2010
ILLEGAL SELL OF HOUSES ON THE INCREASE IN BULAWAYO
Khumbulani Maphosa (Media and Publications Officer)
BULAWAYO - There seems to be an upsurge in the illegal sell of houses in Bulawayo’s high-density suburbs as evidenced by an incident reported in the local IsiNdebele newspaper, UMthunywa, where a house has been sold five times without the owner’s knowledge.
According to media reports carried in the latest edition of UMthunywa (30 April to 6 May), this house which is Tshabalala, house number 7559/10 has been sold five times to five different people without the owner’s knowledge. The media reports claim that the house, which belongs to Sophia Mpofu, who is now based in Harare, is under the custody of her niece Siphiwe Ndlovu who is now blind. The paper further reports that Siphiwe Ndlovu was last week on Wednesday evicted by the people who claimed to have bought the house.
It is also reported that the house was recently advertised in another local paper as being sold for $10 000.
The paper further reports that when the residents’ association representatives visited the housing office they discovered that the ownership of the house has not been changed from Sophia Mpofu.
COMMENT: Habakkuk Trust can confidently report that the issue of the illegal sell of houses is not peculiar to Tshabalala only. The organisation has, since 2007 been advocating on the same issue in Mpopoma, a suburb adjacent to Tshabalala. Apart from gathering empirical evidence on the houses sold in Mpopoma, the organisation has gone to the extent of holding two public sensitization meetings where a total of 220 members of the public have been educated on the procedures to be followed in the sell of houses as well as other related concerns by representatives from the High Court, the Zimbabwe Republic Police, the Bulawayo Legal Projects Centre and the Bulawayo City Council. Another meeting is set for the 23rd of May 2010 at Mpopoma Community hall for the same reasons of creating awareness on the issue. Through the advocacy actions of the Habakkuk Trust Action Team in Mpopoma one case is now being handled by the courts.
Khumbulani Maphosa (Media and Publications Officer)
BULAWAYO - There seems to be an upsurge in the illegal sell of houses in Bulawayo’s high-density suburbs as evidenced by an incident reported in the local IsiNdebele newspaper, UMthunywa, where a house has been sold five times without the owner’s knowledge.
According to media reports carried in the latest edition of UMthunywa (30 April to 6 May), this house which is Tshabalala, house number 7559/10 has been sold five times to five different people without the owner’s knowledge. The media reports claim that the house, which belongs to Sophia Mpofu, who is now based in Harare, is under the custody of her niece Siphiwe Ndlovu who is now blind. The paper further reports that Siphiwe Ndlovu was last week on Wednesday evicted by the people who claimed to have bought the house.
It is also reported that the house was recently advertised in another local paper as being sold for $10 000.
The paper further reports that when the residents’ association representatives visited the housing office they discovered that the ownership of the house has not been changed from Sophia Mpofu.
COMMENT: Habakkuk Trust can confidently report that the issue of the illegal sell of houses is not peculiar to Tshabalala only. The organisation has, since 2007 been advocating on the same issue in Mpopoma, a suburb adjacent to Tshabalala. Apart from gathering empirical evidence on the houses sold in Mpopoma, the organisation has gone to the extent of holding two public sensitization meetings where a total of 220 members of the public have been educated on the procedures to be followed in the sell of houses as well as other related concerns by representatives from the High Court, the Zimbabwe Republic Police, the Bulawayo Legal Projects Centre and the Bulawayo City Council. Another meeting is set for the 23rd of May 2010 at Mpopoma Community hall for the same reasons of creating awareness on the issue. Through the advocacy actions of the Habakkuk Trust Action Team in Mpopoma one case is now being handled by the courts.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
DEVOLUTION OF POWER IS NON-NEGOTIABLE: POLITICAL PARTIES
By Media and Publications Officer
In a rare moment of unity, togetherness and purposefulness, political parties operational in Matabeleland converged together to come up with a common regional position on the constitution courtesy of the Habakkuk Trust constitutional sector meeting.
The meeting that was held at the Habakkuk Trust Umkhankaso Centre on Friday 5 March 2010 had regional representatives from both factions of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC and MDC-T), Zimbabwe African People’s Union (ZAPU), United People’s Party (UPP) and Patriotic Union of Matabeleland (PUMA).
Of commonality from all the parties was devolution of power, which they said is non-negotiable, and should be enshrined in the constitution. Other issues that strongly resonated from all the parties were issues to do with limited powers of the executive, clear separation of powers in the executive, the judiciary and the legislature. They also agreed that the tenure of office for the presidency should be a maximum of two terms and each term should be five years.
Minor differences, however, were evident on the kind of legislature, as some preferred a bi-cameral system and others were of the one house parliament where the senate is abolished as they said it is a strain to the fiscal resources. There were also some minor differences on the electoral systems to be used though the majority of them opted for proportional representation and only MDC-T preferred what they termed the hybrid system which is a mixture of both proportional representation and first past the post system.
The Habakkuk Trust sector meetings on the constitution continue today (09 March 2010) with a sector meeting for Councilors which is expected to be attended by all Councilors from the City of Bulawayo and will focus more on systems of government.
By Media and Publications Officer
In a rare moment of unity, togetherness and purposefulness, political parties operational in Matabeleland converged together to come up with a common regional position on the constitution courtesy of the Habakkuk Trust constitutional sector meeting.
The meeting that was held at the Habakkuk Trust Umkhankaso Centre on Friday 5 March 2010 had regional representatives from both factions of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC and MDC-T), Zimbabwe African People’s Union (ZAPU), United People’s Party (UPP) and Patriotic Union of Matabeleland (PUMA).
Of commonality from all the parties was devolution of power, which they said is non-negotiable, and should be enshrined in the constitution. Other issues that strongly resonated from all the parties were issues to do with limited powers of the executive, clear separation of powers in the executive, the judiciary and the legislature. They also agreed that the tenure of office for the presidency should be a maximum of two terms and each term should be five years.
Minor differences, however, were evident on the kind of legislature, as some preferred a bi-cameral system and others were of the one house parliament where the senate is abolished as they said it is a strain to the fiscal resources. There were also some minor differences on the electoral systems to be used though the majority of them opted for proportional representation and only MDC-T preferred what they termed the hybrid system which is a mixture of both proportional representation and first past the post system.
The Habakkuk Trust sector meetings on the constitution continue today (09 March 2010) with a sector meeting for Councilors which is expected to be attended by all Councilors from the City of Bulawayo and will focus more on systems of government.
DUAL CITIZENSHIP A MUST: NON-CITIZENS SECTOR MEETING
By Khumbulani Maphosa (Media and Publications Officer)
Participants at the Habakkuk Trust sector meeting organised for non-citizens/aliens have underscored the need for the new constitution to realise the importance of dual citizenship and provide it to its citizens.
Contributing during the proceedings of the meeting, participants noted that some of them were born in Zimbabwe and they know nothing of their ancestral countries and therefore they should be accorded Zimbabwean citizenship. They said dual citizenship would make it easy for children of aliens to be realized as Zimbabwean citizens and have full enjoyment of human rights in their country of birth.
Mr G. Moyo an educationist by profession bemoaned the rampant discrimination and disrespect of human rights in the country, based on ethnic lines. He said most descents of Malawi and Zambia are treated as second-class citizens in Zimbabwe, which ironically is their country of Birth. He therefore demanded that ‘aliens should get equal rights and enjoy equal rights and privileges as other citizens.’
He further challenged the use of derogatory and discriminatory terms used in the country’s national documents, terms such as ‘extra territorial students’ for non-citizen students, and ‘aliens’ which is used in the national Identity cards referring to those not of Zimbabwean origin.
Commenting on the same issue Mrs S. Sakala suggested that ‘kungathini ukuthi bafake ilizwe engivela kulo kulokuthi u Alien?’ (Why can’t they indicate my country of origin instead of using the word alien?). Other participants also suggested the use of acronyms such as NC or FC (Non-Citizen and Foreign Citizen respectively) instead of Alien.
Participants also stressed the need for non-citizen children to be accorded equal educational opportunities with local students. They therefore called for the scrapping of the additional foreign levy that they pay in schools and ensuring that their students are also awarded scholarships.
The Habakkuk Trust Constitutional Sector meetings continue today (05 March 2010) with a sector meeting for all the political parties operating in the Matabeleland Region.
By Khumbulani Maphosa (Media and Publications Officer)
Participants at the Habakkuk Trust sector meeting organised for non-citizens/aliens have underscored the need for the new constitution to realise the importance of dual citizenship and provide it to its citizens.
Contributing during the proceedings of the meeting, participants noted that some of them were born in Zimbabwe and they know nothing of their ancestral countries and therefore they should be accorded Zimbabwean citizenship. They said dual citizenship would make it easy for children of aliens to be realized as Zimbabwean citizens and have full enjoyment of human rights in their country of birth.
Mr G. Moyo an educationist by profession bemoaned the rampant discrimination and disrespect of human rights in the country, based on ethnic lines. He said most descents of Malawi and Zambia are treated as second-class citizens in Zimbabwe, which ironically is their country of Birth. He therefore demanded that ‘aliens should get equal rights and enjoy equal rights and privileges as other citizens.’
He further challenged the use of derogatory and discriminatory terms used in the country’s national documents, terms such as ‘extra territorial students’ for non-citizen students, and ‘aliens’ which is used in the national Identity cards referring to those not of Zimbabwean origin.
Commenting on the same issue Mrs S. Sakala suggested that ‘kungathini ukuthi bafake ilizwe engivela kulo kulokuthi u Alien?’ (Why can’t they indicate my country of origin instead of using the word alien?). Other participants also suggested the use of acronyms such as NC or FC (Non-Citizen and Foreign Citizen respectively) instead of Alien.
Participants also stressed the need for non-citizen children to be accorded equal educational opportunities with local students. They therefore called for the scrapping of the additional foreign levy that they pay in schools and ensuring that their students are also awarded scholarships.
The Habakkuk Trust Constitutional Sector meetings continue today (05 March 2010) with a sector meeting for all the political parties operating in the Matabeleland Region.
ABOLISH NATIONAL YOUTH SERVICE: YOUTH SECTOR MEETING.
By Khumbulani Maphosa (Information and Publicity Officer)
Participants at the Habakkuk Trust sector meeting for Youths and Children have underscored the need for the National Youth Service not to be constitutionalised so as to protect it from being politically usurped.
Speaking during the proceedings of the sector think tank meeting on the 25th February 2010, most participants who included youths, students and representatives of youth organisations said ‘the national youth service should not be a political issue but a national agenda with the interests of the youths and the nation’.
They further demanded that the Youths Service should be a platform for job creation and an area for skills training. It was thus resolved that the National Youth Service should not be put in the constitution but should be looked at as a strategy for Youth Empowerment and Development.
Other issues that were raised included the recognition of the rights of children of offenders especially when they are with their parents in prison.
Mrs Mlala from Childline further probed the new constitution to consider the rights of children who are in conflict with the law. She was concerned that child offenders are sometimes publicly humiliated which violates their rights as children.
Other key issues that were debated included the need for the legal age of majority to be raised from 18 years to 21 years, the democratization of the Junior Council and enshrining Education as a right for every child.
By Khumbulani Maphosa (Information and Publicity Officer)
Participants at the Habakkuk Trust sector meeting for Youths and Children have underscored the need for the National Youth Service not to be constitutionalised so as to protect it from being politically usurped.
Speaking during the proceedings of the sector think tank meeting on the 25th February 2010, most participants who included youths, students and representatives of youth organisations said ‘the national youth service should not be a political issue but a national agenda with the interests of the youths and the nation’.
They further demanded that the Youths Service should be a platform for job creation and an area for skills training. It was thus resolved that the National Youth Service should not be put in the constitution but should be looked at as a strategy for Youth Empowerment and Development.
Other issues that were raised included the recognition of the rights of children of offenders especially when they are with their parents in prison.
Mrs Mlala from Childline further probed the new constitution to consider the rights of children who are in conflict with the law. She was concerned that child offenders are sometimes publicly humiliated which violates their rights as children.
Other key issues that were debated included the need for the legal age of majority to be raised from 18 years to 21 years, the democratization of the Junior Council and enshrining Education as a right for every child.
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