“Wishing a
blessed Sunday to my brothers and sisters in lockdown. I am proud of the way
you have responded to this challenging situation, with discipline, commitment,
and spirit. The road is long, but we are on the right path. Stay strong and
keep it up. Together, we shall overcome!” said Mnangagwa.
I find this sickening! Mnangagwa
has treated the ordinary Zimbabweans as third-class citizens denying us our
basic freedoms and rights including the right to a meaningful vote and even the
right to life. He rigged the July 2018 elections and even had seven people shot
dead for daring to protest another rigged election. And so after once again
ruthless crashing our hopes for meaning democratic change and economic recovery;
he is now lording over calling us brothers and sisters!
Mnangagwa is like an abusive
husband who is all over the wife like a rash, as if he is the most loving and
attentive husband ever, even as she sports a black-eye from a recent savage
beating by the brute!
“We don’t want violence, so I
said soldiers go and silence these people, they were silenced,” Mnangagwa told
his Zanu PF supporters in Mwenezi following the protest the fuel rise in
January 2019. “Sort them out … We will crush our enemies, and they are being
crushed!”
Hundreds of thousands were beat
and/or raped and 17 were shoot dead for daring to protest the country’s
worsening economic situation.
“Even on communal water points,
joint ZRP and municipal police manned and organized communities for order and
social distancing. It became clearer that the water supply situation in our
cities and towns need urgent attention,” chipped in the faithful as a dog
George Charamba.
It is laughable that the regime
is admitting to its failure to supply clean running water so people can wash
their hands regularly as one of the simple measures in the fight to stop the
spread of corona virus. The country has completely failed to implement even the
most basic measures to stop the spread of the virus and as the outbreak picks
pace will find it is ill-equipped to deal with the sick and dead!
Our health care services has
all but completely collapsed. There is a chronic shortage of doctors and nurses
as most left the country to seek a living wage and better working conditions.
There is no basic equipment and no medicine, even referral hospitals like
Parerenyatwa and Mpilo Hospital regularly run out something as basic as pain
killers and even clean running water. The situation is even worse for the
smaller hospitals and clinics.
Zimbabwe will offer no
meaningful hospital care service to the corona virus patience and so the death
rate will be considerably higher compared to other nation that offered
ventilators and ICU.
“Communities really appreciated
the fact of a leadership mindful of the need to show empathy and first-hand
appreciation of how families are coping. The whistle trip became the only
appropriate mode and approach in the wake of the severe lockdown during which
crowds and crowding are disallowed,” continued the infernal Charamba.
Appreciate! What is there for
the ordinary Zimbabwean to appreciate in a regime whose leaders have creamed
off the nation’s wealth to build their palatial Blue Roof mansions and to pay
for their extravagant lifestyles, so much so that even the country’s hospitals
have no clean running water!
11 comments:
We must never ever forget that Mnangagwa is a ruthless autocratic dictator and not a democrat. He knows that the country’s worsen economic meltdown has underlined the failures of the 40 years of tyrannical Zanu PF misrule as the nation has been dragged deeper and deeper into the abyss. The voices crying for meaningful democratic change have been growing louder and louder these last two decades.
The corona virus pandemic is going to expose just how corrupt and incompetent this Zanu PF regime is like never before. As the death toll from the corona virus soars the people will ask why was it that the ruling elite poured billions of dollars into building these sprawling palatial Blue Roof mansions and left key institutions like Parerenyatwa Hospital to rot and decay?
Even now at the on set of the corona virus outbreak; why is it that the country has more Police Officers, Soldiers, CIO Officers and Prison Service Officers, all well paid and well equipped with tear-gas, water-cannons, guns, bullets, etc.; and very few doctors, nurses, teachers, social workers, all poorly paid and equipped?
Mnangagwa was praising the people for their “discipline and unity” during the lockdown but just to remind everyone that he would, indeed, set his ruthless security dogs on the people if they dare ask any awkward questions, he deployed the dogs. Whereas other nations have been recalling retired medical staff to help fight the corona virus pandemic; Mnangagwa has bolstered the state terror machine.
The corona virus pandemic has shaken the whole world to its foundation just as other major events such as the Second World War. When you lay new foundation to rebuild you have the opportunity for real change. One notable change out of the WWII is the breakup of the colonial empires and many nations gained their independence.
The notable change to come out of the corona virus pandemic has to be the dismantling of this failed corrupt, incompetent, vote rigging and murderous Zanu PF dictatorship. Zimbabwe’s murderous security dogs have a “Shoot to kill!” standing order, we all know that. But after 40 years of ruinous and tyrannical rule the people will know the dictatorship must go and their will, in the end, prevail!
Mnangagwa declared a 21-day lockdown starting on March 30 to help slowdown the spread of the novel coronavirus – but for many, staying at home is a luxury they can scarcely afford.
Without running water, many residents crowded around boreholes for the precious liquid while others stood in queues to buy the scarce maize meal staple.
There is no denying that social distancing is impossible where people are forced to live cheek by jowl and have to queue for water, food, to use the toilet, etc. And in these crowded situations, corona virus will spread like grass fire and it is spreading!
The failure to provide clean running water and sanitation is one of the problems that manifested soon after independence and is all due to poor planning on this Zanu PF regime. Today every city and town in Zimbabwe is struggling to supply clean running water on a regular basis. Some communities have no water for days or even weeks on end. Indeed, some suburbs in Harare and other big cities have had no water for years!
Zimbabwe will need all the help it can get in cash or kind for corona virus test kits, PPE for frontline staff, ventilators, specialist personal, etc. And now it is clear the country will also need help in making sure there is clean running water!
In this day and age, we still failing to supply something as basic as clean water and hygienic sanitation! What a damning testimonial of just how corrupt, incompetent and utterly useless this Zanu PF dictatorship is! And we, the people, are paying dearly for our folly at allowing such a regime determine the nation’s destiny all these last 40 years. Look where Zanu PF has landed us!!!!
"I have just got a plaintive appeal from a resident of Waverley in Kadoma intimating wanton disregard of lockdown especially by the youths. If discipline is not internally generated, it might have to be introduced externally. Musazoti mavara azare ivhu!!!!" Charamba posted on Twitter.
Watson Chipare was of a different view calling on government to address the poverty faced by most Zimbabweans. "Personally, I support every government initiative in arresting this menace, but as government what are you doing to mitigate poverty and hunger in these communities," said Chipare.
Charamba said eliminating poverty was not an overnight process.
"Can't be an overnight wonder mufunge; situation much worse because of lockdown which attacks livelihoods of the vulnerable. My worry over this has a very good ear and we beginning to experience traction on SMEs and informal businesses," he said.
As much as Mnangagwa was praising Zimbabweans for their “discipline and unity during the lockdown” over the week, the nation was well aware that the regime had deployed the Police, Army and CIO to enforce the lockdown. This is a regime that has always wielded the big stick to cow the nation into submission.
Yes, poverty cannot be eliminated overnight but we are talking here of how Zanu PF misrule of the last 40 years has destroyed the country’s economy and created the poverty. The people could not remove Zanu PF from office because the party rigged the elections!
Zanu PF has always ridden roughshod over the people denying them the basic freedoms and rights including the right to a meaningful vote and even the right to life.
When Mnangagwa talks of “discipline and unity” he is talking of everyone must accept Zanu PF rule even when that rule is the root cause of the heart-breaking suffering and deaths. He wants the people to suffer and die in silence like sheep! He has stripped the people of all their freedoms and rights, their right to life and hope and is now stripping them of their humanity.
Mnangagwa decree is for Zimbabweans to die of hunger and/or corona virus without ever uttering a word questioning his corrupt and tyrannical rule or be torn to pieces by the regime’s murderous thugs! Of course, it is insane to obey such an utterly irrational decree!
High Court Judge Justice Owen Tagu will on Monday 6 April 2020 preside over the determination of an urgent chamber application filed by Chitungwiza Residents Trust (Chitrest), represented by Tonderai Bhatasara and Tinashe Chinopfukutwa of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights (ZLHR), protesting against the pro-longed lack of running tap water supplies in Chitungwiza.
The failure to supply clean running water will contribute to the spread of the deadly corona virus. WHO has advised repeatedly that people “must wash their hands for 20 seconds with soap and clean water!” And even Zimbabwe government officials themselves repeated the message.
Yet every city and town in Zimbabwe today has failed to supply clean running water at one point or another on a regular basis. Have no water for days or even weeks on end is a common occurrence in Zimbabwe. Some suburbs have had no running water for months and even years!
The lack of clean water in the rural areas is the norm.
We are out there begging for cash and kind donations for corona virus test kits, PPE for frontline staff, ventilators and all the other specialist staff and equipment to fight corona virus. And now it turns out, we also need the donors to help us supply clean water too! S***t!
The failure to supply something as basic as clean water, in this day and age, is a damning testimonial of just how corrupt, incompetent and utterly useless this Zanu PF government is.
Worst of all, one has to ask: What kind of people would allow themselves to be led like sheep to the slaughter for 40 years down such a disastrous path?
UPDATE: 05 APRIL 2020
Today is day 7 of the 21-day TOTAL LOCKDOWN period in Zimbabwe.
During this Lockdown period, and in line with guidance from WHO, the Ministry is prioritizing, finding, testing, isolation, and treatment of every case in the country as well as tracing every contact as key strategies to identify all suspected cases and minimize community spread of COVID-19.
The Ministry would like to report that today, the National Microbiology Reference Laboratory tested 9 samples.
All of them tested negative for COVID-19.
WHO guidelines say that an infected person will contact five people a day to whom he/she could pass the virus. Tracing meanings trying to find these five individuals and testing them. With each passing day the infected person will contact another five more people and so too will those he/she infected the first day. So, starting with just one infected the number of people to be traced and tested goes from 1 to 6 to 36 and so on by the end of day seven this number is 279 936.
Zimbabwe has 9 confirmed cases of corona virus and each of these individuals were free to infect others for at least a week before they were put into isolation or died, in the case of the late Zororo Makamba. So, the number of people to be traced and tested has swollen to over 2.5 million. To be testing 9 a day is just nonsense!
Zimbabwe should at least be testing every deceased person just to be certain it was not a corona virus related death. It is nonsense to believe only 9 people are dying a day!
Zimbabwe does not have the resources to deal with the demand for specialist health care that comes with the corona virus outbreak as we have seen in Italy, USA, etc. Zimbabwe’s only hope to stop corona virus was by stopping the virus spreading in the first place by putting all its effort into testing and tracing.
The sheer incompetence with which Zanu PF is handling this corona virus pandemic is typical of the regime but the consequences to the nation this time are huge, counting in the number of dead!
To date, 46 African states have reported a total of 9 198 positive cases and 414 deaths, according to the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Besides South Africa and Egypt, the countries of Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Burkina Faso, Ghana and Senegal have all reported over 100 cases, mostly imported by visitors from Europe.
Most African countries have not followed the common sense advice to trace and test as many as possible all those who might have come in contact with someone with corona virus. Zimbabwe has 9 confirmed corona virus cases and yet to date has carried out less than 400 tests! Even now, the country is not even carrying out tests on all suspicious deaths. The country is only carrying out a total of 9 tests per day!
Countries like Zimbabwe have no clue how the corona virus is spreading in the country they will be forced to wake-up to that reality when number of dead are soaring and cannot be ignored anymore! By then the situation will be so bad that the nation will be failing to cope with the task of burying the dead!
@ Shem Chaibva
Although COVID-19 is said to affect the elderly more, this is cold comfort for Africa, which is a region that has the youngest population compared to other regions. Vulnerability to widespread COVID-19 in Africa is more related to underlying health conditions , of which Africans have a disproportionate share. The prevalence of HIV – AIDS and malnutrition in Africa make it plausible that younger people in Africa could be more susceptible to COVID-19 than other regions. Health systems in Africa are also already stretched in dealing with ongoing disease burdens like malaria and Ebola. This means that there are fewer resources now in Africa to deal with widespread COVID-19, which is now increasingly inevitable.
Measures to try and contain the virus such as national lockdowns, social distances, factory closures and travel restrictions are going to cripple supply chains, reduce output, hit commodities and send confidence on a downward spiral.
The lockdown in most African countries was such an ill-advised and inaptly implemented affair it is no exaggeration to call them a copycat that backfired with disastrous consequences. Urban centres are, more often than not the epicentres of the corona virus as the virus is brought into the country from outside. The urban dwellers are more mobile.
So, a lockdown of the urban centres would have been more appropriate than nationwide. Worse still, a nationwide lockdown that allowed urban dwellers to move to rural areas before the lockdown was a very foolish thing indeed.
China lockdown Wuhan, the epicentre of the virus, and not the whole of China. And it would have been down right stupid to let the people of Wuhan travel to every corner of China and then have the nationwide lockdown.
The main reason why leaders like Mnangagwa were quick off the mark in imposing the lockdown is because controlling the populous appeals to his tyrannical nature and he and his security dogs are relishing every minute of it. Police have even been seizing truckloads of vegetables and burning them!
Since Zimbabwe has not been testing to see how the virus is doing during the lockdown the is no reason why the lockdown should be extended beyond the original 21 days! There was no data to justify imposing the lockdown and no data to justify extending it – the regime was just shooting in the dark.
The Zimbabwe Electricity Distribution Company (ZETDC) announced an increase in tariffs by 19,2 percent, at a time when the country is no longer experiencing prolonged power cuts.
According to a notice by the ZETDC, 200 units of electricity, which used to be sold for $157, will now cost $162,50, while 50 units which used to cost $20,50 will now cost $24,50. After 200 units have been consumed, all other units will now go for a punitive $4,61 per kilowatt hour (kWh) compared to $3,87 per kWh before.
The Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (ZERA) has approved an increase in the price of fuel after the government increased the amount of exercise duty. The new fuel prices are effective Sunday, 5 April 2020.
Diesel has now gone up to ZWL $21.52 from ZWL$18.66 per litre while Blended Petrol has gone up to ZWL$21.77 per litre from ZWL$18.70
The increase in the price of fuel and electricity has triggered a new wave of price increase of everything except, as usual, wages. Indeed, the workers have just effectively had a salary cut; they will earn nothing during the 21-day lockdown and will be lucky to have a job at the end of the lockdown! Many companies were struggling before the corona virus, many will not survive the economic chaos that is to follow.
Countries like UK have already approved economic packages designed to help business and to make sure no one starves. The UK government will pay 80% of the worker’s wage of companies that will not lay-off their workers during these difficult days. The country’s welfare system will help the rest.
It is clear that this Zanu PF government has no plan what to do to look after the poorest of the poor, to protect the country’s few functioning industries, to kick-start the economy once the corona virus blows over, etc. Nothing! Allowing these fuel and electricity price increases will only make the economic situation even worse and throw even more people that the present 34% into abject poverty! At 34% in abject poverty Zimbabwe was already the worst in the region with single digit figures.
Zimbabwe is in this economic mess because of 40 years of gross mismanagement and rampant corruption. Corona virus has made the situation worse but given Zanu PF’s breath-taking incompetence the regime will make the situation truly hell-on-earth for us all!
Whilst other nation are going to get financial assistance, for example, the WB, IMF and most other institutions and donors will be loathed to give Zimbabwe much because they all know most of the assistance will be looted by the ruling elite!
Prior to the spread of the coronavirus or COVID-19 that was first detected in China’s Hubei province late last year, the IMF had already slashed its 2020 economic growth projection for Zimbabwe from 2.7% to 0.8%, citing poor performance of the agriculture sector and government’s “policy missteps”.
The country is under a 21-day lockdown to try and control the spread of the disease with far-reaching disruptions of local businesses.
Bleak economic outlook
In a statement, the IMF said that it was now apparent that the outbreak would adversely impact the economic outlook.
“Covid-19 will make it even harder to balance the policies needed to restore macroeconomic stability with those to address urgent social needs,” the IMF said.
“Zimbabwe is experiencing an economic and humanitarian crisis.
The people of Zimbabwe have known for the last 40 years that Zanu PF was a corrupt, incompetent and murderous regime that rigged elections to stay in power. There is no denying that in those 40 years the nation has had many golden opportunities, most notable of all during the 2008 GNU, to implement the democratic reforms to end the de facto one-party dictatorship and have wasted them all.
In the long run, nations get the government they deserve, we in Zimbabwe certainly deserve this corrupt, incompetent and tyrannical Zanu PF regime complete with its entourage of equally corrupt and incompetent opposition parties, all 130 of them at the last count!
The nation has paid dearly in lost treasure, avoidable human suffering and wasted human lives. Corona virus is exerting a lot of economic hardships and many lives have been lost but countries like Zimbabwe with corrupt and incompetent government will pay an even higher price to corona virus.
The failure to ensure the country had something as basic as clean running water, for example, means even more people will get the virus and more will die! And it goes without saying that a lot of the donor assistance will be wasted or looted!
Until the day we finally decide to do something to end the curse of bad governance, Zimbabwe will pay the price for having a corrupt, incompetent and utterly useless government.
The number of Covid-19 positive cases has increased from nine to ten, according to latest report from the ministry of health and child care.
According to the health ministry, 13 samples were tested today at the National Microbiology Laboratory with one of these testing positive for Covid19.
The tenth Covid19 patient returned home from UK two weeks ago.
So the individual has been infecting others for the last two weeks! So if we count the number of people he/she may have come in contact with from the person seating next to him in the plane, the immigration officer at the airport, the person who picked him at the airport, all the people who live in the same house or visited in the last two weeks, all the people he visited in their homes or offices, etc.
The list will be 40 people plus already and we have not counted the strangers he met in the bank queue, etc. All these people must all be traced and test a.s.a.p. because if anyone of them got the virus then they too are busy spreading it. If you can only test 13 samples a day it will take three days to test the 40 people! 40 days!
Countries like South Korea have been able to do as many as 10 000 test a day so the technology is there. The question to be asked is how much effort has this regime put into buying such test kits?
It is really frustrating that the country cannot even guarantee the supply of clean running water!
There is no doubt that many, many lives are going to be lost unnecessarily to covid-19 in Zimbabwe because of the sheer incompetence of this Zanu PF regime. This is truly a high price to pay for bad governance! Too high!
According to Mambo, the latest case is a 24-year-old female, a Harare resident who arrived from the United Kingdom two weeks ago.
"She said to be clinically stable. A total of 371 people has so far been tested since the first case was recorded," Mambo said.
This is just a nightmare in which there is no waking up because one knows that they are awake and that it is all real!
Zimbabwe has had a total of 10 confirmed corona virus cases and so there have been a total of 37 follow up tests carried on each case. It is nonsense to think the young lady in this case would have had contact with only 37 people in two weeks!
Zimbabwe is clearly not carrying out enough trace and tests and therefore there are many infected people out there who are spreading the virus. The country is going to pay dearly for it when the death toll starts to rise and cannot be swept under the carpet anymore.
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