Sunday News

10 October 2010

Senior Sports Reporter

THE revamping of Khumalo Hockey Stadium is set to start soon after the release of US$1 million for the project by the government.
Education, Sport, Arts and Culture Minister David Coltart, said the money was now in the hands of his Ministry and the Ministry of Public Works will soon flight tenders for the supply of the turf and repair of the structure.
Coltart and officials from the Ministry of Public Works, Hockey Association of Zimbabwe represented by president Farai Kanyangarara, treasurer Gavin Stephens and the SRC had the first side meeting at the stadium last Thursday.
“There has been lots of progress, we had our first site meeting last Thursday, the whole process has to be fast tracked so make sure the stadium is ready early next year,” said Coltart.
According to the Education, Sport, Arts and Culture Minister, the artificial turf for the both the A and B field will come at an estimated cost of US$600 000. Other areas of the facility that need attention are the flood lights, water pumping system, the roof which has some part of it blown away by the wind and the public address system which has been vandalised.
Coltart added that the artificial turf at the stadium which has become an eyesore will soon be removed.
The refurbishment of Khumalo Hockey Stadium will facilitate the hosting by Zimbabwe of the 2012 London Olympics Africa Hockey Qualifiers next year.
Coltart said two foreign governments have shown interest in providing funding for the renovation of Magamba Hockey Stadium in Harare.
Built by the Ministry of Public Works and handed over to the SRC ahead of the 1995 All Africa Games hosted by Zimbabwe, both Khumalo and Magamba were world class facilities and some of the best hockey facilities in the continent. Neglect and the disintegration of the turf have led to the stadiums being unusable.
The revamping of Khumalo Hockey Stadium will come as a huge relief to hockey enthusiasts in Zimbabwe as the sport had returned to grass.

Herald

By Robson Sharuko

9 October 2010

FROM the very beginning it was so clear that there was something terribly wrong, that it was all certain to end in tears, controversy and accusations of betrayal, that it was all an insult to professionalism as we know it today and that it was all so shadowy even the football gods rejected it.

From the very start it was so clear that something would go horribly wrong, that it was all poised to end in heartbreak, mudslinging and a bad Press, that it was all an insult to the values of management as we know it today and that it was all so primitive that even the football gods dissociated themselves from the farce.

From the word go it was so clear that something just wasn’t right, that it was all meant to end in embarrassment, problems and complications, that it was all an insult to the ethics of leadership as we know it today and that it was all so ancient, bordering on being barbaric, that even the football gods turned away from the madness.

From the beginning it was so clear that it was all comic, it was all a mess, was simply chaotic, everything was in a shambles, there was anarchy and all the structures were in disarray.

A few weeks later, on the eve of the Warriors’ key 2012 Nations Cup qualifier against Cape Verde at the National Sports Stadium tomorrow, we all have egg on our faces — the journalists, the kamikaze administrators, the disgraced technical committee, everyone at 53 Livingstone Avenue and everyone employed to write the world’s most beautiful game in this country.

Tom Saintfiet, the man handpicked by the Zifa technical committee, is holed up in Francistown, across our western border in Botswana, waiting for a call telling him that his application for a work permit to coach the Warriors has been processed and, if he passes the test, returning to take his post as the gaffer.

The team that he was meant to coach tomorrow remains without a substantive coach, five months after the last substantive coach Sunday Chidzambwa left the job, and it is a measure of how badly we manage our football that the team that Mhofu joined, and then left, in South Africa, has already found a replacement.

The man we trusted to guide the team in Liberia, during our search for the coach, and was only thrust into the Warriors’ coaching staff because of public pressure because the technical committee didn’t like Norman Mapeza so much they even settled for Friday Phiri and Madinda Ndlovu as assistant coaches to Saintfiet, remains in limbo after being abused by a system that hates him with a passion.

In the week that all the focus was supposed to fall on the Warriors’ preparations, all the attention shifted to the circus in the camp related to their coaches and the troops could only watch, from a distance, and wonder whether this is the madness that they wanted to see when they left their foreign bases for a week on national duty serving their dear motherland.

But was it all supposed to be like this?

Definitely No!

But we should have read the signs from day one that there was something horribly wrong — the flawed selection process where the technical committee, in their obsession to appoint a foreign coach, offered Saintfiet the job long before Mapeza had been interviewed for the same post.

We should have read the signs when stories were leaked that Mapeza didn’t have the qualifications, as a way of justifying the decision to choose Saintfiet, even though the Belgian didn’t have a league championship under his belt — a key part of the CV of a coach, according to the advert placed by Zifa, which the association was looking for to guide the Warriors.

We should have read the signs when Madinda and Friday, who had not applied for the posts, were suddenly airlifted from obscurity into the fast lane of the Warriors’ coaching staff, roped in as lieutenants Saintfiet ahead of Mapeza even though, given his service to the team, under Mhofu and his own, Norman appeared a better candidate for the assistant coach’s positions.

The Taxi Ride From The Airport

We should have known that there was something wrong, with the whole thing, when Saintfiet arrived in the capital that Monday evening and, at the Harare International Airport, there was only Benedict Moyo to welcome him here.

Where were the other board members?

Given the importance of the visitor, one would have expected the whole Zifa board to have been at Harare International Airport to welcome the new coach, make him feel at home and show him that he had the support of everyone in their team. But there was only one man, who lives in Kwekwe, to welcome him at the airport and, another man, who lives in Bulawayo, to welcome him to the hotel he checked into that night.

Where were all the Harare-based board members?

We should have known that there was something wrong when Saintfiet was bundled into a taxi, on arrival at Harare International Airport that Monday evening, because — if we are genuine to our conscience — that’s not the way we welcome such important visitors to our country.

There is nothing wrong with a taxi ride, and the people who live in Europe, will tell you that it’s all fine.

But there is everything questionable with a Zifa board, which has consistently provided cars and luxury buses to pick up visiting referees, visiting referees’ instructors, visiting Fifa development officers, visiting coaches’ instructors, visiting foreign teams and their officials, to suddenly change the way they conduct business now that their coach, the Warriors’ coach, was coming.

Why was Tom bundled into that taxi when everyone who has visited us has been provided with a chauffer driven car, to ferry him or her from the airport to their hotel, given that — because of the Warriors’ importance — he was probably the most important foreign football visitor since the turn of the millennium.

Did it mean that a Zifa board that had chartered a long-haul Boeing 767 200 Extended Range passenger jet at the cost of about US$250 000, and given free seats to scores of fans on the tour of Liberia, had suddenly gone so broke that it couldn’t afford to provide a decent car for Saintfiet — if everything was above board — just to take him on that short trip from the airport?

On that Monday evening, with the summer darkness having fallen over Harare, as Saintfiet emerged into the arrivals lounge, only to be greeted by the lonely figure of Benedict Moyo, we probably missed a big story that should have told us that whatever was happening, related to the coach, was not the work of a united Zifa board.

On that Monday evening, as a gentle summer evening breeze filtered from the Manyame River and gave a lovely comforting massage burnt out by the intense heat of that afternoon, we should have known that we were not privileged witnesses to a marriage made in heaven but we were just seeing a union made in hell.

We should have known then that there were cracks within the Zifa board, when it came to the coach, and the man who appeared solidly in support of his candidature was the only one who had braved the challenge to come and welcome Saintfiet to Zimbabwe that day.

Now, as the drama reaches fever pitch, we can only look to that very first day and see that there was more, to what we saw at Harare International Airport that day, than what we cared to analyse.

Together, as journalists, we let our readers down because we didn’t see the story behind the story, we didn’t see what CNN would have called the Back Story, we didn’t see the plots and sub-plots hidden behind the absence of the other board members and we didn’t care to question why this appeared to be a one-man show.

Now, three weeks down the line, we know what we missed, how we missed it and how we failed to prepare our readership, that evening, for the chaos that was likely to follow.

We are all poorer, as the football writing journalists of this country, for that omission.

Work Permit Blues Everywhere

Well, Saintfiet remains holed up in Botswana and a number of people have already spoken out about this issue with even the Minister of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture David Coltart, a man whose commitment to his job, and professionalism, are virtues I have learnt to respect, also adding his voice.

What has clearly emerged from all the voices is that the case, related to the coach, could have been handled better.

What has also emerged from all this is that noone is above the law and, on Monday and Tuesday, the country’s laws were broken.

Someone lied to the coach, possibly those who employed him in the first place, that he could go ahead and work without a work permit, as what happened on Monday and Tuesday, and court all the controversy that followed.

But why are Saintfiet’s disciples trying to give us the impression that the coach’s problems are unique and, because of that, it should be the product of an underground movement that didn’t want him to be on the bench tomorrow?

Why are these people suddenly being allowed to make a mockery of the immigration authorities in this country?

Why are the Zifa board members trying to get a helping hand from Vice-President John Nkomo, whom they say is their patron now that times are bad, when the Zifa Council removed the status of patron from the revised constitution when times where good?

Have we forgotten that we have thousands of skilled Zimbabweans, who because of their educational qualities, were offered jobs in many foreign countries right now but they probably missed that chance to start a new life after running into complications related to being granted work permits.

The irony of it all is that Norman Mapeza is also a victim of all this. Having impressed in Turkey, playing in the Champions League for Galatasaray, as a midfield partner of Georgi Hagi, known as the Maradona of the Carpathian Mountains, and playing against Barcelonaand the likes of Romario and Stoichkov, Mapeza caught the attention of Harry Redknapp.

Redknapp was then in charge of West Ham, known as the Academy of Football in England because of its excellent youth development programme, and Mapeza arrived at Upton Park for trials and impressed, in his first week, and was offered a contract.

He was supposed to partner Rio Ferdinand, who was then at West Ham before his move to Leeds United and then Manchester United, in central defence.

But while Mapeza had impressed Redknapp and was offered a contract, he could only sign after being granted a work permit.

As it turned out, the British Immigration authorities turned down West Ham’s application for Mapeza’s work permit because Zimbabwe was such a lowly ranked nation in the world and, in line with new regulations in that country, a player from this nation could only be granted a work permit under special circumstances.

Redknapp didn’t make the stupid move to field Mapeza because he knew that the laws didn’t allow that, he knew it was illegal and he knew that the Zimbabwean wouldn’t be given a licence to play in the Premiership as long as he didn’t have a work permit.

It was the end of Mapeza’s dream to move to England, not because he was not good, but because he fell foul of the law.

I remember calling Ferdinand one night, after being given his phone number by an agent, and we talked at length about Mapeza and he told me, in an interview later published in this newspaper, that he was disappointed that West Ham had lost such a talent because of work permit complications.

But Ferdinand said that was the way life was and, since it was what the law said, it was just unfortunate that they couldn’t change anything and he wished Mapeza all the best in the rest of his career.

Norman would not be the last Zimbabwean player to run into complications, related to work permits, in an English club career.

Onismor Bhasera, who is certain to play leftback tomorrow for the Warriors, went through the same nightmare when he tried to join Portsmouth last season after the Fratton Park club, which was then in the Premiership, offered him a contract.

It then required a number of appeals, while the player’s career was in limbo, before Bhasera was eventually cleared — a couple of months down the line — and then joined Plymouth Argyle in the Championship.

So what is so special about Saintfiet that this whole country should come to a standstill, simply because he was politely asked to leave the country to ensure that he remains on the good side of the law while his application is being processed, and we all should close our shops and schools for his cause?

I have no problem with Tom and I sympathise with him here because he wasn’t familiar with the laws of this country and there are people who told him that he would not be breaking any laws, even if he conducted the training sessions, because everything was under control.

Those are the people who are causing all this chaos.

People Power

The Zifa board needs to understand, and do so urgently, that their job is merely to serve the game in the interests of the majority of the people of this country.

Once their execution of duties, differs sharply with the interests of this country, then it means that there is something terribly wrong with that.

Of course, it doesn’t mean that the majority is always right but there are certain issues, especially when it comes to football, when even the average fan knows who is certainly the best player in the country and who are certainly the best coaches around.

I’m not saying that the Zifa board should make populist decisions but it should try, as much as possible, to ensure that whatever decision they are bound to make, falls in line with the interests of the majority of the fans.

When this Zifa board made a firm decision against trips to Asia by the Warriors, on the basis that they were bringing the name of the team into disrepute and were adding no value to the side, it was a decision that fell in line with the interests of the majority of the fans.

So it was not surprising that the board received the full backing of the people of this country.

When the same Zifa board made the decision to let Mapeza lead the Warriors, on a caretaker basis, for the game against Liberia, it was a decision that fell in line with the interests of the majority of the fans and that was why there was no controversy.

What created controversy this time around was that the decision to appoint Saintfiet as coach, ahead of Mapeza, did not appear to fall in line with the interests of the majority of the fans whose soul remain tormented by a past where foreign coaches have failed.

When the same fans look at giants like Cote d’Ivoire and see that even the Elephants, for all their profile and star players, have ditched the concept of foreign coaches and turned to the locals, those fans read something in those moves.

When the same fans recall the events that happened at the 2010 Nations Cup finals, and realise that for all the galaxy of foreign coaches who were there, it took a team led by a local coach, the Pharaohs of Egypt, to win the tournament, those supporters read something into all that. When the same fans recall that the winners of the last three editions of the Nations Cup finals, for all the big number of foreign coaches who have featured at the tournaments, have been a team coached a local coach, these supporters read something into all that.

When the same fans see that even Bafana Bafana, for all the money that is in their football, have even gone local, they read something into all that because they are wise enough to understand that there is no money in our football and can’t understand where we have suddenly got US$8 000 (net) every month to pay Saintfiet.

They ask why shouldn’t that money be invested in the players, who play the game and fly our national flag, so that we can see if it cannot inspire them to play better and produce good results?

They wonder why Norman appears to have become so bad that he cannot even be number one, and when the preferred number one runs into problem, he cannot even be number two when, only a month ago when the going was tough in Liberia, he was the number one.

They question why Saintfiet can come here and, rather than be a diplomat, he plunges into stupid battles, including mocking our point in Liberia with a foolish excuse that the Lone Stars should have been beaten, all in an attempt to rub salt into the wounds of Norman.

They ask that if Saintfiet was such a saint and points are easy to pick on the road in Africa, as he appeared to claim in his childish attack on Norman, why then did Namibia then lose against little Gambia in Banjul in their first 2012 Nations Cup qualifier last month?

They read what is coming from Namibia and when that country’s Football Association president John Muinjo comments about Saintfiet, they listen and ask questions.

“If it is true that he has been appointed as Zimbabwe’s national team coach, then he was not loyal and he is not credible. We have not received any communication from him. He lacked the professionalism to tell us that he wants to go for another offer in Zimbabwe,” said Muinjo.

“His (Saintfiet) contract is performance based. He lost focus and obviously saw that he was failing to qualify this country for the 2012 Nations Cup, that’s why he decided to go.”

They ask, given all this, if it was necessary for a country like Zimbabwe, and an organisation like Zifa, to go to a friendly nation like Namibia and create all this confusion by poaching this coach?

They need answers, these fans, and when they don’t get answers they believe that their interests are not being represented and that is what torches a rebellion.

We Can’t Dump Our Boys

Given all that has happened, the worst thing we could do for our boys — who have suffered so much during the turbulent week — is to abandon them right now just when they need us the most.

The last thing we could do, right now, is take our frustrations to our boys and decide not to support them, in this big game, simply because we are disappointed by this and that thing which happened.

The best thing that we can do for our boys is to fill the stadium, just the way we did it when Brazil came to town, and in that theatre of dreams, we will re-discover our soul, we will find each other again, we will warm up to the Zifa technical committee and we will try to win tomorrow’s game.

The best thing we can do for our Warriors is to support their cause and show them that, even though they were betrayed by the football leadership, we stand by them and, by going to the National Sports Stadium in numbers, we would have scored a beautiful goal against the administrators.

Let’s forget about the problems that have plagued our camp this week and, just for these last two days, let’s shift the focus to the boys who matter much, the Warriors, so that they feel that their nation is behind them and wants them to do more than what they did in Liberia.

Let’s forget about all the enemies we created this week, because that is what happens in a struggle, and — just for this weekend — let’s reach out to our foes and let’s join hands, united by our identity as Zimbabweans, in backing our dear Warriors.

Let’s forget about all the people who have made us angry this week, even if a lot of now appear to have a problem with what is going on at 53 Livingstone Avenue, and — for the moment — let’s concentrate on what matters and the mission should be to beat Cape Verde.

Let’s forget all those Zifa leaders who tried to split us into tribal groups, through their demarcation of the national team into tribal zones that need representation in the Warriors, and — for a moment — let’s concentrate on what matters most.

If we win tomorrow, and we should, we will heal some of the wounds we have all inflicted in the game that we all love in a forgettable week.

The good thing is that we will have about five months, from tomorrow to our next game in Mali, and there will be time to sort out our problems.

Do it for your dear motherland my true Warriors.

Chronicle

8 October 2010

By Nduduzo Tshuma

VICE-PRESIDENT John Nkomo yesterday visited the Mabhena home in Bulawayo to pass his condolences following the death of former Matabeleland North Governor Welshman Mabhena on Tuesday.

Mabhena (86) died at his Four Winds home on Tuesday morning at about 6am after a long struggle with diabetes and high blood pressure.
VP Nkomo was accompanied by the Deputy President of the Senate, Naison Khutshwekhaya Ndlovu, Zanu-PF national secretary for education, Dr Sikhanyiso Ndlovu, and Zanu-PF Bulawayo provincial chairman Cde Isaac Dakamela.

The Zanu-PF Politburo on Wednesday met in Harare and unanimously declared Mabhena a national hero. However, the Mabhena family said it was not accepting the party’s gesture and would go ahead and bury the former Governor at the Lady Stanley Cemetery tomorrow.

After arriving at the Mabhena residence, VP Nkomo went into a two-hour meeting with the Mabhena family to discuss the politician’s burial arrangements. When he emerged from the meeting, VP Nkomo declined to divulge what they had discussed with the family, led by Mr Norman Mabhena and former National Railways of Zimbabwe general manager, Alvord Mabhena.

The Vice-President said he had to report back to the Zanu-PF Politburo and President Mugabe on what was discussed.

“We were here firstly to pass our condolences to the Mabhena family following the death of Welshman Mabhena,” said VP Nkomo.

“Secondly, since the Politburo granted Mabhena national hero status, it is the norm that some people are sent to go and convey the message to the family.
“We have spoken to the family but we cannot tell you now but we will let you know in due course. We have to first report back before going public.”

VP Nkomo called on Zimbabweans to defend the gains of independence that Mabhena and other nationalists sacrificed their lives for.

He said Mabhena was one of the pioneer nationalists having started participating in politics of resistance in the 1950s and for that he should be respected for his contributions. “It is for the remaining generation to safeguard the gains of independence that Mabhena sacrificed for. His sacrifices should not be in vain,” said VP Nkomo.
However, the Mabhena family spokesman Mr Norman Mabhena insisted that his brother would be buried at the Lady Stanley Cemetery tomorrow.
“Welshman will be buried at the Lady Stanley Cemetery as per his wishes. His works gave Welshman his hero status. It is in recognition of his works and fight for the liberation of the country from 1953,” said Mr Mabhena.

In a statement yesterday, Zanu-PF national chairman Cde Simon Khaya Moyo said he learnt with utter bewilderment about the death of Mabhena.
“Cde Mabhena’s liberation credentials need no marking as they constitute a textbook of a tested revolutionary, a visionary leader and a great man of purpose. The highest honour awarded to him by the Zanu-PF Politburo as a national hero was deserved and merited,” said Cde Moyo.

“No one can ever take that honour from him. His footprints will forever remain carved in stone for he was an epitome of steadfastness, a fountain of wisdom and a leader of enviable fair play, development wise.

“The ‘Lion of Nkayi’ has gone to sleep. Zimbabwe is indeed poorer by his silence. In wishing his family strength and staying power, may his soul anchor and rest in eternal peace.”

More people continued to visit the Mabhena home to pass their condolences to the family. Among them were Minister of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture David Coltart and Chief Mtshane Khumalo of Bubi.

Minister Coltart described Mabhena as a man of great integrity who was passionate about the people of Matabeleland.

“Welshman has been a good friend of mine for many years. We met in 1986 when he was my client. He was a man of great integrity and passionate about the people of Matabeleland,” said Minister Coltart. “His death is a loss to Matabeleland and Zimbabwe as a whole. If anyone deserves to be a hero, it is Mabhena, as you can see with his house that he was a modest man.

“He left a legacy of servant leadership, he did not acquire great wealth for himself but was dedicated to the people and country. He left a legacy of leadership that we need to aspire for.”

After the attainment of Independence in 1980, Cde Mabhena became the chairperson for the Nkayi Rural District Council.

The at-times controversial Cde Mabhena was in 1985 elected Member of Parliament for Nkayi constituency on a PF-Zapu ticket. At that time he was the secretary-general of the party and in 1987 after the united Zanu-PF was born, Mabhena became Matabeleland North provincial chairman.

In 1990, Mabhena, who was the Deputy Speaker of Parliament, was appointed Minister of State for Political Affairs.

During that time he was a Zanu-PF Politburo member holding the portfolio of Secretary for Transport and Welfare. He was later appointed Governor for Matabeleland North Province, a post he held until he retired in July 2000.

Although he lived under a cloud of speculation that he was joining MDC, Cde Mabhena came out in 2006 and said he was not a member of the party, which he described as lacking an ideology that the people can identify with.

Mabhena is survived by his wife, Rebecca, three children, 12 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

Mourners are gathered at Number 12 Amatja Road in Four Winds.

Zimbabwe Independent

8 October 2010

ZIFA is desperately seeking the intervention of Vice President John Nkomo to secure a work permit for national soccer team coach Tom Saintfiet who was ordered to leave the country on Tuesday by the immigration department.
Saintfiet was ordered out of the country after starting his coaching duties without a work permit, leaving the Warriors preparations for the crucial African Cup of Nations qualifier against Cape Verde on Sunday at the National Sports Stadium in disarray.
Zifa had left it too late to file Saintfiet’s work permit application papers with the immigration department.
Impeccable sources at Zifa House told IndependentSport that the football association had approached Nkomo seeking his intervention. The sources said Saintfeit would be expected back in the country before the Sunday match. It was not clear if he would be on the Warriors technical team bench.
“They (Zifa) have had to rope in Vice-President Nkomo to help them get the work permit early enough,” one of the sources said. “He (Nkomo) is the patron of Zifa and with the situation having gone out of hand, they have had to seek help from him to facilitate a special dispensation on the issuance of that permit. They are confident now that the coach will be in the country to commence work as the Warriors gaffer.”
The sources said the failure to secure the permit had also cost Zifa, as it was forced to hire a vehicle and driver to take Saintfeit to Botswana where he sought temporary sanctuary.
“He is staying in Botswana where Zifa is paying for his upkeep. They are paying the price of maladministration,” the source said. “The coach is waiting anxiously for the papers to be sorted out.”
Zifa board member for development Benedict Moyo, who of late has been speaking on behalf of the association, yesterday declined to comment on the latest development and referred questions to the association president Cuthbert Dube. Dube’s phone went unanswered.
Meanwhile, Sports minister David Coltart has castigated Zifa and the immigration department for throwing the Warriors’ preparations into chaos by failing to handle the Saintfeit’s saga professionally.
In an interview with IndependentSport on Wednesday, Coltart said Zifa and the immigration department had failed to put national interest.
“Our laws must be complied with, but it concerns me that there is no spirit of co-operation between the two organisations,” said Coltart.  “We would expect them to act in the national interest and do everything within their powers to make sure that the team has the best preparations for such an important game.”
He said it was a great embarrassment for a Warriors coach to be ordered to leave the country on the eve of a crucial match because he does not have a work permit.
“I implore all those involved, Zifa, the Sports and Recreation Commission and the immigration department to act quickly to resolve this situation,” Coltart said. “I will be highly irritated if this episode results in our team failing to win on Sunday.”

Chronicle

7 Oct 2010

Chronicle Reporter

THE printing of textbooks for secondary schools will face further delays because donors have not yet released funds, the Minister of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture, David Coltart, said yesterday.
Speaking in a telephone interview, Minister Coltart said there were outstanding finances from donors, a situation that is delaying the start of the exercise.
Minister Coltart said printing of textbooks for secondary schools was initially supposed to start before the end of the year, with distribution set to begin early next year.
Nine countries, which he declined to name, had promised to bankroll the exercise.
He said two of the donors engaged by the ministry were yet to release funding towards printing of the textbooks, hence the delay in the start of the exercise.
“We have not yet started printing the secondary school textbooks because we are still waiting for some outstanding finances. The project has been delayed because the donors have not sent funds as agreed,” said Minister Coltart.
“The whole project requires funding in the range of US$20 million, but the donors have not yet released this money. But as soon as we get the money we will start printing using the same process we used for primary school textbooks.”
Minister Coltart said the programme would focus on core subjects at secondary school level namely English, Mathematics, Geography, History, Biology, Integrated Science, isiNdebele and Shona.
Early this year, the Ministry of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture, the United Nations Children Fund (Unicef) and other donors entered into a partnership to procure millions of textbooks and stationery kits for schools nationwide.
The programme is run under the Education Transition Fund (ETF) with the aim of improving the quality of education in the country.
It started as a response to serious shortages of teaching and learning materials as well as textbooks in schools where between 10 and 15 pupils share one textbook.
Its goal is to reduce the ratio to one book per pupil.
Meanwhile, Minister Coltart said the distribution process of the primary school textbooks was going on well with most books having been sent to various stations.
The Government launched a nationwide exercise to distribute textbooks to more than 5 500 primary schools last month.
Minister Coltart said he was waiting for a report from Unicef, who are conducting the distribution, to get an update of the exercise. He said priority was given to remote schools so as to complete the exercise before the start of the rainy season.
“Distribution is going on well. We focused on the most remote schools to try and beat the rains. I requested for a progress report from Unicef on Monday but I am yet to receive it.  All I can say is that we are going as fast as we can to cover all the 5 500 primary schools as we contracted several transporting companies for the exercise,” he said.

Zimonline

By Sebastian Nyamhangambiri

7 October 2010

Zimbabwean Education and Sports Minister David Coltart has written to the country’s immigration authorities to reverse deportation of new national soccer coach Tom Saintfiet for working without a permit saying the decision to expel the Belgian coach was not in the interests of the country.

“I have written to the co-Ministers of home affairs to ensure that this decision is reviewed. It was made with no national interests and it will definitely affect the performance of our team,” Coltart said on Wednesday.

Saintfiet was ordered to leave the southern African country by immigration authorities and only return after obtaining a work permit allowing him to work as coach of the Warriors national side.

The co-home affairs ministers could not be reached for comment last night.

The former Namibia coach was last month appointed by the Zimbabwe Football Association to lead the Warriors in their preparations for an African Nations Cup qualifier against Cape Verde next weekend.

But immigration officials on Tuesday ordered Saintfiet to abandon preparations for the key game and leave Zimbabwe on the next flight out of the country and to only return upon obtaining a work permit.

Former Zimbabwe captain Norman Mapeza is expected to lead the team while the status of Saintfiet is being addressed.

Mapeza, who once played for Turkish giants Galatasaray, coached the Zimbabwe team in its previous assignment against Liberia last month in Monrovia where it salvaged a one-all draw.

Newsday

4 October 2010

By Wellington Toni

Zimbabwe is no longer in the running to host the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations finals after missing out the deadline set by the Confederation of African Football (Caf).

The deadline was Thursday at midnight and on Saturday Caf announced that only three countries — South Africa, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Morocco — had bid to host the 2015 and 2017 editions.

“The Caf administration has registered the following three (3) applications from its Member Associations: RD Congo, Morocco and South Africa.”

The hosting rights for the 30th and 31st editions of the continent’s showpiece football event will be determined by the Caf executive committee at a meeting to be decided in 2011.

Gabon and Equatorial Guinea will jointly host the 2012 edition and Libya in 2013 as holding of the competition moves into odd years.

That was before a decision to change the calendar to odd years to avoid it running in the same year as the World Cup was made.

Two weeks ago, Zifa president Cuthbert Dube said they would bid for the 2015 edition, but that dream has now been shattered.

Dube was actually the chairman of the 2010 Afcon bid committee from 2005 to 2006. In fact, in his campaign manifesto, Dube said it was his dream to host Caf and Fifa competitions in a bid to “rebrand and profile the association and Zimbabwe in general”.

Zimbabwe controversially lost the 2000 hosting bid to Nigeria and Ghana when Africa’s football governing body, Caf, having already confirmed the southern African country as the hosts, said it was not convinced the stadiums would be ready in time.

Zimbabwe later bid for the 2004 finals and lost to Tunisia. Then Zifa chairman Wellington Nyatanga said last September that Zimbabwe had submitted its bid for 2014.

Earlier this month, Education, Sport and Culture minister David Coltart announced that the government should look at building two stadiums for the hosting of the 2017 tournament.

“As government we believe we should  facilitate the hosting of the 2017 Nations Cup event,” said Coltart.

The Standard

By Jennifer Dube

3 October 2010

EDUCATION, Sport, Arts  and Culture minister David Coltart says Zimbabweans must not mislead themselves into believing that the country has the highest
literacy levels in Africa.
Coltart’s surprise remarks come months after some government officials especially from Zanu PF, gave themselves a pat on the back following the
release of statistics showing Zimbabwe overtaking Tunisia as the country with the highest literacy rate on the continent at 92%.
But Coltart, a lawyer by profession, said the methodology used by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in coming up with the rankings was
flawed. He said the UNDP relied on figures showing attendance at school for the first four years of formal education as indicators of literacy rates but the
Grade VII results will be a more accurate indicator for Zimbabwe.
The recent study had shown that Zimbabwe’s literacy had increased from 85% to 92%.
“We need to analyse the basis on which such statements are made otherwise  we will relax thinking our literacy rates are very high yet they are not,”
Coltart said. “I am not convinced that the use of attendance is the best way of judging because most of our children have gone for long periods with no text books and no teachers.
“We must not think that all is well. Our literacy rates may not be as high as we think they are. We have several other indicators to consider.”
He gave an example of a recent survey among Grade V pupils in Manicaland which showed that there were “alarmingly low” rates of literacy.
Coltart said most of the pupils in the survey did not have Grade V literacy levels but had Grade I and II levels, a scenario he said most likely applied
to all provinces in this country.
“Our education system is in a crisis and we need to do a lot of work to restore the quality of education for our children’s sake,” he said.
The minister added that a number of interventions which he felt would help improve the quality of education in the country were being carried out.
Among these is the recent textbook scheme being spearheaded by the United Nations Children’s Fund in conjunction with government whereby text books
are being distributed to schools across the country.
The government has also re-engaged temporary teachers with the hope of addressing the student-teacher ratios which continued to dwindle as teachers
deserted their schools due to disgruntlement over poor remuneration and working conditions.
Coltart said the school inspections of the past were also set to return following a US$1,3 million fund allocated to the sector for the purchase of
vehicles to be used in the exercise.
About 70 vehicles will be bought for use by district education officers in monitoring schools. Among others, they will check if school heads are carrying out their administrative roles properly.They will also check if schools have the required numbers of teachers and the requisite levels of enrolment and text books.

Herald

By Robson Sharuko

2 October 2010

Harare — JUST when world cricket, reeling from the damage inflicted by allegations of match-fixing scandals, needed a breath of fresh air to show there was still integrity in the gentleman’s game, it found that beautiful ray of light from a very unlikely source.

The fallout from Pakistan’s tour to England, the wounds inflicted by the allegations of match-fixing and the counter claims by Pakistan Cricket Board chief Ijaz Butt that the hosts might also have influenced the outcome of the third ODI, had left world cricket looking for a feel-good story.

England coach Andy Flower said the reputation of cricket was now in tatters, Butt flew back to England and retracted his statement that they might have thrown away the third ODI and world cricket cried out loudly for a tale to charm its broken heart.

When it came, last week, it was from a very unlikely source.

Zimbabwe Cricket has had its fair share of trials and tribulations in the past few years it’s very likely that noone would certainly have placed any bets on it providing that refreshing tale, which would charm world cricket, at a time when the game was searching its soul.

But that’s what precisely happened as the shrewd leadership at the ZC, led by a managing director who is possibly evolving into the finest sporting administrator in this country today, surprised the world with a gesture that gave cricket the integrity it might have lost during the Pakistan/England attrition.

On face value it was probably just another decision, in the backwaters of the Intercontinental Cup, which didn’t matter that much.

But, given the trying times for the game, it was a magical decision that showed there were still men of honour in a game that has been plagued by a syndrome of greed.

When Ozias Bvute announced last week that ZC were offering Scotland the full 20 points for the Intercontinental Cup game that was supposed to have been played in this country, but was put on ice, after the Scots decided not to travel to Harare on the advice of the British Government.

Ireland toured Zimbabwe and, after their drawn match against Zimbabwe A, the Scots were set to be eliminated from the competition until Bvute provided a ray of hope for them by offering them all the 20 points on offer for the game that was never played.

“The Associate Members countries use this and other competitions to benchmark and track their progress, which progress is important to them,” said Bvute in his offer.

“To this end we feel that the Intercontinental Cup is a significant competition in Scotland’s development and therefore important that it gets the full benefits associated with playing in it.

“While Scotland’s decision not to tour has been attributed to political considerations, we as Zimbabwe Cricket are not qualified to comment on matters political of any country, nor would we want to base the future of the game of cricket on political directives.

“As such Zimbabwe has no dispute with either Cricket Scotland or the ICC. Instead, we seek only a solution that will ultimately allow for fair participation by all.

“Zimbabwe has no dispute with either Cricket Scotland or the ICC.

“Instead, we seek only a solution that will ultimately allow for fair participation by all, as such, ZC has decided to forfeit the match in favour of Scotland.”

With just one magical decision, the ZC leadership showed the world that, contrary to the dosages of propaganda that it had been fed by biased media outlets, they were certainly not the heartless characters who cared for noone and listened to anyone.

They showed that, in a world where some would even possibly throw away the integrity of the game for the sake of money, they still cared for the game and, rather than see an enemy in a Scotland team that had given them a raw deal, found an ally that needed help in its journey to turn into a competitive nation.

They showed that they were prepared to go the extra mile, just to embrace their cricket partners, and even losing a place in the Intercontinental Cup final was worth the sacrifice.

They understood that beyond the foolish decision by the British authorities to prevent Scotland from travelling to Zimbabwe, was a group of cricket loving men and women — working under the Cricket Scotland umbrella — who cared for the game, probably liked Zimbabwe Cricket and, given a chance, would probably have acted differently. Zimbabwe had little to gain from the Intercontinental Cup save for exposing a number of its emerging players to the challenges in the lower reaches of world cricket.

Scotland had everything to gain from the Intercontinental Cup because, given their level of development, this is their class and, in this competition, they can measure their progress.

ZC’s decision, to forfeit the points, was celebrated around the world as a triumph for the game of cricket that would help build bridges in a sport that is reeling from major challenges.

The Times of India described it as an offer of goodwill.

The Scotsman described it as a surprise decision.

“Scotland have been handed a surprise Intercontinental Cup reprieve, after Zimbabwe offered to forfeit the points from their controversial fixture,” wrote William Duck, in The Scotsman.

“The Scots faced elimination from the tournament after refusing to travel to Harare on UK government advice, which says that sporting tours by British teams send a positive signal when not enough progress has been made in Zimbabwe on political reform and re-establishing the rule of law.”

And, when the ICC confirmed that Scotland had been awarded the full 20 points from that match, thanks to Zimbabwe’s offer, there was joy in the corridors of Cricket Scotland.

“This is certainly an unexpected development and we have always said that the most important thing is for our players to get the chance to play for the Intercontinental Cup,” said Cricket Scotland chief executive Roddy Smith.

“It is a satisfactory outcome to what has been a very difficult situation for ourselves, Zimbabwe and the ICC.

“We would rather have had the opportunity to play against Zimbabwe and we do not celebrate the fact that they have forfeited the match.

“However, we have said all along that we wanted our players to get the opportunity to compete for the Intercontinental Cup and now they will get that chance. I am delighted for the guys.

“If you take Zimbabwe’s results out of the equation we would have been in the top two in any case. We have never had any issue with Zimbabwe Cricket and we would have no hesitation in travelling there once the UK government’s stance has changed.”

Dave Richardson, chairman of the ICC’s event technical committee, said he was hopeful this would not happen again.

“We did everything possible to facilitate an agreement between the two countries and would have been happy for the game to take place anywhere in the world,” he told the Scotsman.

“But the two sides could not agree and it is important for the integrity of the competition that these circumstances are not be allowed to happen again.”

The Minister of Education, Sport and Culture, David Coltart, said cricket had triumphed over politics following the Zimbabwe Cricket’s decision to forfeit the points to Scotland.

Coltart, who traces his family tree to Scotland, appears to be enjoying warm relations with the ZC leadership after a rocky start as the two sides continue to reach out to each other.

The minister has been on a personal crusade to try and persuade Australia, New Zealand and England to end their tour boycott of Zimbabwe and appears to be winning his battle with the Aussies and the Kiwis opening the way for such movement.

New Zealand A arrived in Harare yesterday for three four-day games spread across the whole of this month at Harare Sports Club.

The Kiwis are being captain by all-rounder James Franklin.

No wonder why Coltart appears a happy man.

“Delighted by Zimbabwe Cricket decision to allow Scotland Cricket to play in the Intercontinental Final instead of them,” he wrote on his Tweeter Page.

“Cricket 1, Politics 0.”

You couldn’t have said it better Honourable Minister. So Scotland will now take their place in the Intercontinental Cup final against Afghanistan in Dubai in November.

But it will be hard, even during that game, to forget the big part played by the brave boys of Zimbabwe Cricket to give the game a chance.

Zimbabwe Independent

By Tapera Kapuya

1 October 2010

TWO years after the signing of the global political agreement (GPA) and subsequent formation of the unity government, its successes and failures remain widely contested. Whereas much of the conversation often focuses on the economy as an objective reflector of the unity government’s scores, it is the political dynamics that are even more important.  This is largely because the primary motivations of the parties in getting into this unity government had everything to do with their strategic political goals.
The political protagonists entered into the GPA for essentially political reasons. The idea of consummating an effective government was largely a subsidiary to the political power contest. Therefore in reflecting on the GPA and its baby, the unity government, one has to keep in mind the attitudes of the political parties towards both agreement and its resultant government.
Zanu PF: reversing the tide
There are different and often diverging motivations why the three parties agreed to the GPA. For Zanu PF, the GPA was essentially a way of retaining power.  The GPA was seen as a way of containing the surge in domestic and international pressure. The March and June 2008 elections had shifted the balance of political power internally and within the region in favour of the MDC-T. For Zanu PF, a settlement with the MDCs would be a way for the party to contain the surge in democratic resistance to its rule.
Zanu PF’s credibility within Sadc had been dented and it was failing to sustain its standing within the wider African Union community. The support of these two groupings and their members had been crucial in dismissing internal pressure. Instead post- 2008 elections saw the MDC-T receiving unprecedented interest from African capitals, including South Africa.  Zanu PF’s dismissal of the MDCs as Western pawns would no longer find a keen ear.
Even more, Zanu PF’s mechanisms of controlling dissent and opposition were becoming limited.  Its use of violence had gone overboard and was achieving more negative results. It was eroding support even amongst some of its staunch supporters. Worse, given the extreme economic depression, the party’s patronage system was running out of goods to dispense to buy loyalty.
The party was on the verge of implosion. The momentum that had held it together through the power of incumbency had diminished. Its members with economic interests were cutting deals with the succeeding party.  Even the state bureaucracy, once noted for its commitment  to Zanu PF was subtly withholding its support, in many instances causing state paralysis.
It is fair to say without the unity government, and in particular after the tragedy of the June election, Zanu PF would have descended into the fringes in the same way Kaunda’s Unip had lost in Zambia.
Two years after the unity government, it is fair to say the Zanu PF strategy of containment has been fairly successful, especially with regards to reclaiming marginal support within the Sadc and the AU. Internally it seems to be managing to dominate the national agenda, its policies and much of its decisions carry the day.  The MDC-T, in particular, has generally failed to maintain its pre-GPA momentum. There is general consensus amongst any honest observer that President Robert Mugabe and his side of the unity government are in control of the government.
MDC-T and the unfinished change
For the MDC-T, this GPA was seen as a strategy for acquiring state power. It was part of a transition strategy where they were negotiating for power under the illusion, real or not, of Zanu PF’s military power. In effect, for the MDC the impression was that of finding a way out of a “silent coup”. This explains some of the compromises the party made.
Given the tragedies the party faced during and immediately after the 2008 elections, there has been an expectation that the MDC-T would use its leverage in the GPA to reinvigorate the party and the broader democracy movement to consolidate the momentum for change. But what is happening on the ground is telling: there has been no real attempt of mass movement building and the party activists remain victims of state and Zanu PF repression. Party cohesion is being tested with reports of divisions undermining confidence. Moreover the party seems uncertain whether to embrace its junior status in government or reorient itself as an alternative government.
The MDC-T has continued to suffer contempt from Zanu PF. It has failed to proffer convincing responses to Zanu PF’s refusal to fully implement the GPA. The MDC-T nominee for deputy agriculture minister is yet to be sworn in; the party’s ICT minister was stripped off all his powers; provincial governors are yet to be announced; and the Prime Minister (Morgan Tsvangirai) finds himself without defined power and more in a ceremonial position. In all these, the popular perception continues to be engraved that the MDC-T are squatters in a Zanu PF government.
The MDC-T against wider expectations seems to have reverted into a “responding” gear: Zanu PF sets the agenda, the MDC-T responds. The party, against wide expectations, is failing to drive a national policy agenda that can take the nation away from Zanu PF’s narrative. This is despite the MDC-T having lead control of parliamentary process: the party has a “moral” majority; the prime minister is leader of government business in parliament and the Speaker is the party’s chairperson. Much could be said of local government where the party dominates yet residents are yet to see a marked departure from Zanu PF’s tendencies.
However, it has to be acknowledged that the  country owes the stability that currently exists in the economy to the MDC-T. Despite claims by Justice minister Patrick Chinamasa and others about dollarisation being a Zanu government decision, this was essentially an MDC idea. If Zanu had its way, it would have printed even more Zim dollars until the ink ran out.
Besides the economy, we might also add the reforms in media and electoral systems. The MDC-T has managed to halt, if not reverse, the closure of media space and an election system run by a corrupt and embedded commission.
MDC-M: The illusions of legitimacy through competency
Despite the fact that the negotiations that finally led to the GPA had been going on since as early as 2003, the GPA would have been essentially a two- party agreement between Zanu and MDC-T. Given Zimbabwe’s polarised politics, the “kingmaker” status of MDC-M’s post 2008 election presence in parliament could in practical terms only have been used to benefit the MDC-T. However MDC-M increasingly became of strategic value to Zanu PF. The party leadership’s sharp differences and little regard for Tsvangirai in particular, became a tool for Zanu PF, which sees the party as a buffer zone for mitigating some of MDC-T’s demands.
For the MDC-M, especially after its March 2008 election legitimacy crisis, the GPA would provide an opportunity to re-legitimise itself through competence. The assumption was the party members in government would perform well enough to sustain the party’s reputational defects. But given that this government never really moved away from Zanu PF’s hold, the MDC-M strategy has failed to bear fruit for the party –– with the exception being David Coltart, the Education minister.
Like the MDC-T, the party has failed to use the relative safety of its leadership in government to mobilise support and rebuild its weak grassroots structures. As with the MDC-T, there has been no concrete national policy proposal from the party apart from random “off-head”, knee- jerk propositions.
The party’s support seems to be waning and the unity government appears to be the only thing that provides relevance to the party. However, it could also be appreciated that the party has been key to thawing polarised tensions between MDC-T and Zanu PF. It has been argued that the agreement, and unity government, in itself owes existence to the machinations of the MDC-M.
Contesting the transitional government
There are two variables of transition that dominate Zimbabwe’s politics. For the parties, especially Zanu PF and MDC-T, transition can be narrowly defined as a process leading to an aftermath where the other party is vanquished and out of power. This narrative sustains the petty intra-government contests: the scramble for credit for government gains and blame for government failures.
Yet for the majority of Zimbabweans, the conclusion of this government should bring an open and democratic order. They do not expect this to be delivered by the party that denied them freedom and inflicted on them so much suffering. To be precise, their hopes are with the MDC-T. The MDC-T presents the best chances Zimbabwe has of unseating Zanu PF and setting the country on the path to democracy.
But for the transition to take effect and be realised, the MDC-T has to go back to the basics and understand that the struggle is not yet over nor has it been won. The party has to creatively take advantage of its station in government to rebuild its structures, mobilise the masses and reconstruct a policy narrative that inspires hope in the millions of our people. It has to draw a fine line between being in government, albeit with little if any power, and remaining a popular front for the establishment of a free, open and democratic country.
Being in government provides the party’s leadership significant protection and immunity to travel across the country and into communities, in particular rural areas, previously deemed NO-GO zones by Zanu PF. Reaching out to grassroots is important in reassuring communities and in ensuring that confidence in the promise of democracy remains.
This challenge also includes reaching out to all the disaffected, including those who have formed or are finding expression in other parties. The main strategic interest of the MDC-T should be to lead and provide leadership to a broad democratic alliance. Relations with progressive mass-based civil society, in particular the ZCTU, NCA, Zinasu and the churches, should be restored and strengthened.
The party’s station in government should serve no other greater purpose than this. The guiding interest of our time is establishing a democratic order. This can become elusive if those in search of it remain divided whilst fighting a consolidating dictatorship.
Tapera Kapuya writes in his personal capacity.