ISSUE 1 WINTER 2015

EDITORIAL COMMENT

Welcome to ourfirst edition ofthe ZAPUNewsletter, oth-erwise knownas ZAPU News.This publica-tion’s mainthrust is to con-

nect with you, listen to you and learn fromyou so that we can develop together toachieve our aspirations of true happiness,which comes with true freedom. Our promise to you is that we shall

always strive to be accurate, current, robustand credible in every possible way in theNewsletter, while also endeavouring to en-tertain, educate, and provoke debate thatinforms policy formulation. We will tell ourstory without fear or favour and adhere tothe highest standards of journalistic principles. In our first edition, we introduce to you

ZAPU’s flagship policy of Devolution ofPower. The subsequent editions will see usintroduce the ZAPU leadership to you. Inorder to sharpen and equip our leaders asthey prepare for national service, we willhave the ‘Leaders’ Corner’, where we willgive you thought-provoking interviews andprofiles of ZAPU leaders from all structures.It remains our fervent hope that you

will enjoy reading this inaugural editionof our Newsletter, and that you will continuewith us in this journey till we reach our ul-timate goal of a democratic and prosperousZimbabwe.I would like to introduce to you the

Team responsible for the success of thispublication. The leader of the Newsletterproject is Mr Bokani Vundla – head ofZAPU Europe’s Information Team, a sub-committee of the Inform Team. I, MjobisaNoko, am the Chief Editor of an editorialteam that also consists of Mr Bokani Vundla,Mr Patrick Ndlovu, Mr Mxolisi Ncube andMr Thulani Nkala. Other key members ofthe Newsletter Team are Mr Arnold Dube,Ms Sakhile Sibanda, Ms Susan Ndlovu,Mr Lawrence Siziba, Mr Clement Moyo,Mr Cakes Vundla and Mr Themba Mthethwa.We hope you will enjoy reading our first

edition and all the subsequent ones to come.

Mjobisa NokoEditor and ZAPU NEC Secretary for Information, Publicity and Marketing

Ndinodana kwauri iweNyanduri hurudza hombarume kana iwe unetarisiro yeshandukoZAPU ndiyo shanduko yawanga wakamirirakwauri iwe mwana weZimbabwe kodzero yakoyanguva yekuti ikosheswe udyi ubvisweHondo yasara muruoko kwete raani nani asi rwakoJaya newe mhandara tora matanho nhasi uwanerusunonguko

Pinda muZAPU uve chapupu pamhino sefodya zvionere shandukoPepuka uone haisati yapera hondo ndiyo nguva yekuvirima kwemoto Zapu muhutongi Shanduko inotambidzanwaInonguva mugoti ndewe ZAPUSimuka urwise

By cde Tavonga Manyiwa (Midlands Provincial Youth Chairperson)

ZAPU NEWSZIMBABWE AFRICAN PEOPLE’S UNION

www.zapu.org

ZAPU Youth wing leaders have sent a chillingmessage to President Robert Mugabe for his con-tinued oppression of the people of Zimbabwe,saying that time is fast approaching for the peo-ple to lose patience and revolt against his rule .Just as the people of Burkina Faso toppled Pres-ident Blaise Compaore’s 27 year rule last year.Blaise was forced to quit in October 2014 fol-lowing country-wide protest against his attemptto stay in power.Speaking at an open air event held at Pic-

cadilly Gardens in Manchester on Saturday,ZAPU Youth Front leader Arnold Dube, his coreyouth partner Cakes Vundla and Womens Chair,Susan Ndlovu blasted the Mugabe regime forbringing misery to the children of Zimbabwe.ZAPU youth and the Women’s wing leaders

blasted Mugabe who on his 91st birthday en-joyed himself at a lavish million dollar birthdaycelebration party in Victoria Falls at a time whenchildren across Zimbabwe cannot afford a mealor medication.Opening the event ZAPU Europe youth chair

Arnold Dube called on Zimbabwe’s diasporacommunity to shake off the comfort of theiradopted countries and start to sacrifice for theirmother land, reminding everyone that freedomhas never been handed on a silver plate. Arnold Dube said, ‘There is a serious problem

in our country that we should never run awayfrom.’He further urged Zimbabweans not to look

sideways but be part of revolution that will bringchange in Zimbabwe.

“Some watched as the brave warriors gath-ered in what at the time seemed like any otherrally not knowing it was the start of the revolu-tion. There are a few people that are part of arevolution, most can say ‘I saw them’ but a fewcan say ‘I was there’. This is day one of the rev-olution and it wont be televised,” said ArnoldDube.Taking to the podium firebrand Cakes Vundla

reminded Zimbabweans that freedom is neverasked for and handed over just like that.“You cannot go anywhere and ask for freedom

and the oppressor gives it to you. The oppressorwill never give it to you because he is benefitingfrom oppressing you, “ Cakes told the gathering.He continued saying, “When we say amandla

ngawethu (Power to the people), we mean itwhen we say power is ours. We,the people,have the power to remove whosoever is inpower. Why should we shy away from the slo-gan that we seek regime change because we doseek regime change. And we as the Youth Frontsay by all means necessary. Now we want apeople’s movement, whereby people will standup and say enough is enough. It has been donebefore and it is not something that is impossi-ble.”Cakes implored Zimbabweans to rise against

their oppressor saying there is nothing impossi-ble about defeating a regime that is oppressingthe people. He recalled the recent toppling ofBlaise Compaore, who had been in power for27 years by the people after holding.

“BlaiseCompaore brutalised the people BurkinaFaso for so many years after killing ThomasSankara, but one day the children of BurkinaFaso remembered Thomas Sankara. They wentto his grave and wept. They went back and tooktheir country. They did not need guns. The gov-ernment forces ran away and left the country.So what is stopping us as Zimbabweans forclaiming back what rightfully belongs to us-truefreedom.”Cakes Vundla bemoaned the continual failure

of the health and educational infrastructure inZimbabwe and said now is the time for Zim-babweans to act and refuse to be silenced.Vundla said hundreds of thousands of childrengo hungry and drop out of school while a fewpeople benefit from the country’s independenceand resources.

“The suffering among the children in Zim-babwe is critical, as Joshua Nkomo once saidabout Gukurahundi ‘It is to see to believe’.Children are dying from diseases, women aredying from lack of medication and from com-plications of minor operations. There is a seriousproblem in our country. Why are there fewerand fewer nurses attending to patients?” Cakestold the crowd.ZAPU Women wing leader, Ms Susan Ndlovu

said, ‘We have a duty to free those suffering chil-dren who cannot go to school’. She called uponthe party members to make sacrifices saying thetime is now and there should be no going back.

ZAPU Road Rally – Manchester, UK REPORTS CLEMENT MOYO

Leaders CornerRAPHAEL SAM MGUNI

ZAPU is the vision forZimbabwe whosetime has arrived.After thirty-five yearsof suffering what canonly be termed “fake”independence, Zim-babwe is crying outfor the freedom

which so many sacrificed so much for during thestruggle for independence. Nobody can contestthat the people’s dream was stolen; Zimbabwewas cheated out of what is rightfully hers. Yet thevision could be lost again. It is at this critical timethat ZAPU needs leadership which believes inempowerment of the Zimbabwean people, lead-ers who do not simply preach devolution, trans-parency, total honesty, probity but exhibit thesequalities both in their personal and public lives.

Mere warm words which are betrayed by corruptpractices, dictatorial tendencies, disregard of anddisdain for what people want are characteristicswhich our Party has to totally reject if we are tobring ALL Zimbabweans back home. Zimbab-weans have been taken for a ride for far too long!This is the season for TRUE SERVANT Leader-

ship as enshrined in our constitution. Our Partynow needs leaders who will fight domination byour enemies as well as by those in our move-ment, whatever guise they can come in. These arethe principles which have guided my stewardshipof the office of Secretary General during the fiveyears I have served ZAPU in that position forwhich I am most thankful to my comrades for en-trusting me with. We need now to criticallyneeded for our people, our country to attain theglory for which Zimbabwe is destined. It is notabout empowering individuals or assuaging a fewegos; it is about creating a place in the sun wherethere is room for everyone! Leaders of the futureare not those who shout loudest about the failuresof others but those who do all they can to shoreup those tasked with the duty to lead.

EDUCATIONEstablishment/DatesGwelo Teachers’ College, ZimbabweMarch 1968 – November 1970Sept 1975 – June 1979

London University Sept. 1979 – March 1982

QUALIFICATIONSAward / Date awardedTeachers’ Certificate – Nov. 1970B.Sc. (Hons) Applied Chemistry, 1st class – June 1979Ph.D. Organic Chemistry – Feb. 1982

EMPLOYMENT HISTORY (Non-Educational, chronological)Establishment, Role & DatesGovernment Medical Stores, Bulawayo, ZimbabweManager, Quality Assurance Jan. 1983 – Dec. 1983

Datlabs Pharmaceuticals, Bulawayo, Zimbabwe(Subsidiary of Seagrams)Research and Development Manager –Jan. 1984 – Aug. 1984

The Academics College, Bexleyheath, London, UKProprietor, Director of Studies and Proprietor –Jan. 1996 – Dec 2005

continued on page 2

Zapu News. Suite 215-218 Vanguard HouseNumber 40 Kenneth Kaunda Avenue Harare,15 Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo street;Corner Connaught and JMN Nkomo; BulawayoKemp House, 152 City Road, London EC1V 2NXUnited Kingdom© 2015

www.zapu.org

The revival of ZAPU and the role of womenZAPU was revived in 2009 and women playeda critical role in this process. They were vocal,visible and very active alongside their malecounterparts. This visibility continued up to thetime of ZAPU’s first Congress in 2010. Anyonewho attended the Congress would agree thatwomen and men attended in nearly equal pro-portions. However, the women’s representationthat emerged out of the Congress did not reflectthe strength of the women’s enthusiasm and ac-tivism leading up to the revival of the Party.

Provisions for women’s participation in ZAPUThe ZAPU policy environment has been con-ducive for women’s participation but this envi-ronment has not significantly changed the rateof women’s representation. Whilst the ZAPU2010 constitution provided for at least 30% rep-resentation, the 2012 amendment went furtherto introduce gender parity or 50/50 ratio whilstretaining the 30% as the minimum target. Thereis also provision for a women only section withits own independent structures namely ZimbabweAfrican Women’s Union (ZAWU). This is a plat-form designed to provide space for women toidentify their own needs and build capacity toparticipate in the party’s mainstream structures.In spite of these provisions, the situation on

the ground shows the status-quo where menstill predominantly occupy the decision makingpositions. A gender analysis of the executives atall levels following the 2010 Congress showsthat there were only two women in the Presidencylater reduced to one after the death of themember of the Council of Elders In all the struc-tures at every level, the representation of womenwas insignificant. Overall, there was an averageof 2 women in the management teams at branch,district and provincial levels.

Aligning politics with women’s needs, income,workloads and cultural barriersQuestions women ask themselves are: wherethe women who were instrumental in the revivalof ZAPU are; did the men simply take over per-haps sometimes with the help of women them-selves; did the women lack the confidence or

did they simply lack the capacity in terms ofknow how or in terms of resources or preventedby cultural barriers and dictates. Furthermorecould it have been the chores and responsibilitiesthat women have, such as, lack of childcare fa-cilities for some families.My view is that answers lie with both women

and men. Women should recognize that there isstrength in numbers to ensure that they occupypositions at the National Executive Level. Menhave the responsibility of facilitating the achieve-ment of gender equity and parity or at least the30% targetWomen must confront the barriers that limit

or inhibit their participation. There needs to bean assessment of where women are startingfrom and where they are currently situated, so-cially, economically and politically. It is crucialtoo to establish the obstacles to their advancementin every sphere of life so as to tackle these andcreate a level playing field for them and men. Inthis regard, the quality of women’s leadership isvery important. Capacity can be enhanced foras long as the women themselves know whatthey have and what their shortfalls are.

The first women’s conference after the revivalof ZAPUWomen in ZAPU or ZAWU held their first con-ference on the 6th of April 2013. They went intothis conference cognizant of their absence in theleadership and decision-making structures ofthe party. There was concern that despite theircontribution in the revival of the party, theyended up with an insignificant slice of the cake.Women were in a fighting spirit and determinedto choose the leadership that would transformthe situation. The conference slogan, “This isOur Time”, attested to this.

The outcome of the conference was the electionof the ZAWU National Interim Executive Com-mitteeAs the conference ended, there were high hopesthat the women now had a platform to work to-wards gender equity and equality and themeeting of their specific needs. This was under4months before the harmonized national elections.

At most meetings and campaigns, women werevisible although only a few became candidatesto take certain positions in Local Government,Provincial Councils, Senate and House of As-sembly. By this time candidates for all these po-sitions had already been nominated, vetted andapproved. This was unfortunate because the se-lection process had taken place before the ZAWUNational Executive was in place. As a result,very little had changed in the gender makeupof the candidates. Out of the 50 House of As-sembly candidates there was only one womanand very disappointingly few for the other posi-tions. It is unfortunate that since the ZAWU Confer-

ence there has been no significant change in thesituation of women. The reasons for this needto be investigated so that appropriate strategiesare put in place in order to achieve significantwomen’s participation in the decision makingstructures of the party.

Forth coming ZAWU Elective ConferenceIn less than 6 weeks, ZAWU is holding its ElectiveConference for its Substantive National Executiveas part of the Congress preparatory process. Asthe date gets closer, it is worrying that there isno evidence of any enthusiasm nor urgent actiontowards the election of a new executive. Theredoes not seem to be any focus on the issues andpriorities of women that need to be dealt with.There is disquiet on the strategies to ensure thatwomen get the at least 30% representation inthe structures. Despite the huge mobilizationdrive currently taking place in the provinces, itis not evident that women are using this oppor-tunity to position themselves for meaningfulpositions. This is despite the provision for genderequity in the Party’s constitution.The responsibility to ensure the participation

of women in all structures of the party howeverdoes not lie with the women alone but withtheir male counterparts as well. After all thewomen have had a share in getting men wherethey are and continue to make it possible. Thisprocess should permeate all levels from thebranch to the presidency. The failure to do thisis not because there are no capable women butperhaps because the party has not identified

them or because the women themselves lackthe confidence and means to push themselvesforward.

Kick starting greater participation by womenSince its revival, ZAPU never had sufficient re-sources for its activities. Where women are in-volved this has meant little allocation for pro-moting women’s participation whereas consid-ering their traditional disadvantage women needsubstantial resources to change the situation.Consequently, there must be bigger efforts tomobilize resources such as:

� Conscious efforts by ZAPU to allocate more re-sources for women’s activities whenever it getsmoney

� Resource mobilization by women including in-come generating activities

�Drive for external support and capacity buildingto complement efforts by ZAPU women andparty programmes for promoting women’s par-ticipation

As ZAPU works towards its Congress later in theyear and as women and youth work towardstheir elective conferences, let us join hands andefforts and ensure that we have strong and ded-icated women that will occupy spaces in theZAPU decision making structures at every level.This will require specific and targeted solutionsto the obstacles that women face. In this regard,development projects and external supportshould be sought. In some provinces a few proj-ects are underway although there is still need toenhance their value and effectiveness.There is still hope for women in the party if

they pull together and bring intheir diversestrengths. Women must be encouraged by thefact that with a clear vision, changes happen,they can happen, they will happen and womenwill make them happen. So sisters and daughterseverywhere: LET US MAKE IT HAPPEN, did wenot after all say “THIS IS OUR TIME”

Participation and Representation of Women in ZAPU Within the Zimbabwe political landscape women are visible when it comes to organizing and attending meetings. However, their enthusiasm gets lost along theway as their activism does not translate into significant representation in either government positions or within any political party decision-making structures.This article is an analysis of the role and participation of women in ZAPU

ARTICLE CONTRIBUTED BY MILDRED MKANDLA, ZAPU MATABELELAND SOUTH PROVINCIAL SECRETARY FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

EMPLOYMENT/EDUCATIONAL (current post first)

Establishment, Role & DatesBellerbys InternationalSenior Lecturer, Chemistry – Jan. 2013 – current

Bexhill College, Course Manager, Chemistry – Sept. 2009 – Current post

St. Luke’s Catholic Sixth Form, SidcupDirector of Learning – Sept. 2004 – Aug. 2009

St Catherine’s Catholic School for Girls, Bexleyheath 2nd i/c Science, Head of KS3 Science and of Chemistry – Jan. 1990 – Aug 2004

Thomas Tallis School, Kidbrooke Teacher of Maths, Science, Electronics and Chemistry –Jan. 1987 – Dec. 1989

Henry Compton School, Fulham Teacher of Maths and Electronics – Jan 1986 – Dec 1986

University of LondonSupervision of undergraduate students and lecturer assistantSept. 1980 – Jan. 1982

Mzingwane Sec. School, ZimbabweTeacher of Science – Jan. 1971 – July 1975

MOST RELEVANT EXPERIENCEThe renaissance of our Party from its most regrettable periodof enforced union meant that many of its managementstructures and protocols had to be built anew. With notemplates to work from many its structures had to beconstructed from scratch. I can state with confidence thatZAPU now has the structures in place which, if properlyutilised should enable the Party sweep into government in thevery near future. These include:

� A slick but most comprehensive communication strategywhich provides pro formae for internal communications aswell as strategies for engaging the electorate andinternational community thus ensuring the quick spread ofinformation about the distinctive vision which our Party hasfor Zimbabwe;

� A SWOT analysis post last election points out a clearroadmap of where our Party can use its position to progresstowards an election victory;

� An organisational model which clearly indicatesinteractions of different structures and organs of the Party,plus sequence and types of meetings to ensure coherenceand efficacy in ZAPU;

� Comprehensive job descriptions and selection proceduresfor all functionaries in ZAPU but particularly for Partyemployees;

� Election guidelines for executive members from branch toprovincial levels;

�Models for holding and maintenance of meetings;� Selection procedures for candidates to stand at nationalelections, some of which are quickly being copied by ouropponents;

� Finance Management structure to guarantee transparencyand accountability by all in our Party;

� Development of an attitude to stand firm in defence ofmembers’ demands;

�Working with individuals and groups of people fromMatobo, both based in Zimbabwe and over the world tofight against forcible acquisition of land and properties inMatebeleland South; notably Maleme, Maphisa which arestill under threat of acquisition by people alien to the area;

� Important links have now been established; should our Partyhave a leadership which puts our house in order, these can beactivated to offer needed assistance with no strings attached.

Establishment, Role & DatesSt Paul’s Group of Ecumenical ChurchesBentham Road, Thamesmead, UK (20+ Ministers) (Congrega-tion 5 000+). Hon. Treasurer to Churches – Jan. 1986 – Aug. 1996

South East Talent Centre, Woolwich, UKManager of Talent groups serving South-East of England (Youth numbers: 250 000+) – Sept 1987 – Aug. 2002

Zimbabwe African People’s UnionChair of Province, Europe Province (Peak membership: c 700)– Oct. 2009 – Oct. 2010

Zimbabwe African People’s UnionSecretary General – Aug. 2010 – July 2015National (Current)

INTERESTSReading, especially biographies, nature, travel, swimming,basketball, chess.

LEADERS CORNER continued from page 1ZAPU PRESIDENT – DR DUMISO DABENGWAI call all Zimbabweans tostand up for a better future inour country.I wish to congratulate

those behind this mouthpiece project of our PartyZAPU. This fills me withmuch optimism that the truthof our Party’s pivotal role inliberating our country willone day be told in full.The pre-1980 struggle was

fought against the Europeansettlers who had forciblytaken our land, enacted hor-

rendous oppressive laws, which consigned all blacks to servitude to whites and rel-egated our people to lives of little worth as even lower than second class citizens. AsZAPU we turned our anger to a clearly defined program of liberation, we laid downclear routes towards our liberation. The 17 years of protracted armed struggle saw usmilitarily defeat the minority regime and attain what we considered victory over op-pression.Unbeknown to us at the time and most unfortunately, what we had achieved was

a mere transfer from the oppressive minority white rule to possibly an even morerepressive rule by a black regime from which we have been attempting to liberateourselves ever since 1980. As is well known, ZAPU has tried every avenue to help the current ruling party

let the people of Zimbabwe enjoy the freedoms for which so much had been sacri-ficed with little or no success. However, there are some little gains of note. We havemanaged to craft a new constitution, which even though still short of the goals ZAPUaspires to goes some way to nudge our country forward. We as a Party are proud tonote that the most progressive elements of the constitution are those we pushed hardto see included.As your President, I can say that we who have been in the struggle almost since

its inception think it is time that it is the turn for others to come forward and completethe struggle and shape the better future for us all, both the older, newer and cominggenerations. The call is particularly to the Youth. You must stand up like we did. Anyhesitation, lurking in the shadows is the threat of an ominous and even greater dangerof an even more ruthless oppressive formation calling itself: the Young Turks!

www.zapu.org

This is the second series of the four part series ex-plaining the ZAPU model of devolution of power. Inthe first installment I explained how ZAPU devolutionof power can deal with the legacy of colonialismand the current negative tribal perspectives in Zim-babwe. In this second series, I have attempted totackle the pertinent questions of what to devolve,where to devolve and how to devolve. The principal goal of the Zimbabwean liberation

struggle was the total removal of racial and tribal dis-crimination, subjugation, exploitation and oppressionof black people of Zimbabwe by the then colonialsettlers. The fight for independence of Zimbabwewas the fight to reclaim the dignity of people of allraces, respect of human rights, equality of rights andfreedoms irrespective of their political affiliation,creed or colour.All human rights are inseparable, such as the right

to life, equality before the law and freedom of ex-pression; economic, social and cultural rights, rightsto work, social security, education and collectiverights (rights to development and self-determination),are indivisible, interrelated and interdependent. Theimprovement of one right facilitates the advancementof the other rights. Likewise, the deprivation of oneright adversely affects the others.The ZAPU model of governance by devolution

offers the best alternative form of governance, it ispeople centred; promotes and protects all humanrights and fundamental freedoms, regardless ofpolitical affiliations, economic and social status, ethnicand cultural background.TheZAPU model of devolution of power makes

use of local assets, human and natural resources toenhance the ability of localcommunities and thegeneral population to maintain and sustain socialand economic development through the concept oflocalism. Local communities are in charge of theirlocal resources and transform them for their ownsocial and economic development.The ZAPU devolutionguarantees a constitutional

transfer of political and administration powers fromcentral government to autonomous regional legislativeassemblies headedby elected premiers contrary toZANU PF approach of imposing leaders on peopleand centralizing all the power. The ZAPU devolution of power model will devolve

full political powers into five regions, namely Mashona-land, Midlands, Manicaland, Matabeleland andMasvingo. Each of the five devolved provinces willhave their own parliament namely the provincialparliament of Mashonaland, provincial parliamentof Midlands, provincial parliament of Manicaland,provincial parliament of Masvingo and provincialparliament of Matabeleland. This concept of devolutionis successful in South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, UnitedStates of America and India.A ZAPU government will devolve power to provin-

cial legislatures using the principle of devomax. De-vomax simply means maximum devolution. ZAPUdevomax therefore refers to maximum level of au-tonomy for provincial legislatures in the exercise ofpolitical, social and economic administration of theiraffairs. This means that all service ministries in Zim-babwe that are currently run by ZANU PFcentralisedgovernment willbe devolved by ZAPU to regionalassemblies bar international relations; security anddefense. The powers of the provincial governments will be

bound by the national constitution, which limitsthem to listed functional areas. The constitution willoutline a principle of co-operative governmentwhereby the various layers of government coordinatetheir actions and legislative duties; lay down a seriesof rules for resolving conflicts between national andprovincial legislation (the lower levels of governance)or within the same levels of governance structures.Provincial legislatures willremain subordinate to thenational assembly and the people they represent.The constitution will spell out how much and howfar authority and responsibility can be devolved tolower levels of governance. The view is that devomaxdepends on ideology of individual parties while forsome parties’ delegation or decentralization is bigenough devolution. It is essential to note that theZAPU model of devolution is not just to aid efficientadministration of the government structures, but it isan ideological concept which seeks to change thepolitical landscape of the country to aid fairness andeliminate injustices by encouraging genuine politicalparticipation at grassroots.The following is a hypothec example of respon-

sibilities that can be devolved to regional assemblies

on the basis of devomax: health and social care; pri-mary law making (byelaws); education and training;local government, settlements, service delivery, housingand local environment; planning social and economicinfrastructure; tourism, sport and recreation, museums,cultural heritage; languages, equality and diversity;local economic development , industry and commerce;internal transport and vehicle licensing; communitybroadcasting both television and radio; provincialenergy, fuel and power supply, mines and mining;agriculture and food productionThe central government will usually retain certain

core powers such as the national constitution; provin-cial affairs and judiciary; international relations &foreign policy; defense and national security ; na-tionality and immigration; national policing, publicorder and correctional services; information and na-tional broadcasting; national finance, tax system andmonetary & economic policy planning; public servicesand employment planning and employment creation.Of importance here is the realization that many ofthese under ZAPU model of devolution will be partlydevolved to regions such some aspects of nationalityand immigration; tax system, policing, etc. ZAPU believes that the principle of devolutionof

power creates a more accurate reflection of publicaspirations, opinions and wishes, and gives opportu-nities for wider participation in politics, social andeconomic development. This system is a key factorin negotiations on the constitution, checks andbalances. It is also designed to address the mistrustamong the country’s ethnic, tribal, racial and religiousgroups on issues of recognition, marginalisation anddiscrimination in economic and social developmentprojects.The ZAPU devolution model heralds a sig-nificant shift in the way communities are governedfree from rigid bureaucratic structures and a lack ofunderstanding of how to engage local communities. The case for a ZAPU devolved model of governance

offers the prospect and means of giving differentprovinces autonomy and control over their localaffairs. Under the ZAPU devolution model, peoplewill feel more secure and willing to accept theauthority and legitimacy of the larger national state.The survival of democracy cannot be winner takesall system. ZAPU believes its devolution of powermodel offers political parties that would not havewon national elections an opportunity to assumeand exercise power in some lower levels of governanceand the central government. This system is thereforeinclusive because it provides all political groups ashare of political power at any level of governance.The ZAPU devolution embraces and enhances the

depth and legitimacy of democracy. Devolution ofpower is a global approach to democratic principles.ZAPU believes it is not enough for people to choosetheir national leaders in periodic elections withoutrecognizing people’s democratic participation andpolitical power at lower levels of governance.Withthe ZAPUmodel of devolution, local communitieshave the advantage of adopting approaches that bestsuit their local needs, cultural preservation, andpolitical structures.The ZAPU devolution model provides better quality

of service delivery premised on local managementcentred on community priorities by the communitiesthemselves ensuringthat local community projectsand budgets are better targeted at community needsand priorities. The focus is the emphasis on outcomesfor citizens rather than outputs for bureaucrats. TheZAPU devolution model presents the opportunityfor enhanced community participation and partner-ships by strengthening the role of elected leaderswhose mandate is influenced by the needs and aspi-rations of local people.The ZAPU model of devolution begins at the

current level of the community or region’s capacityand moving towards an asset approach where thecommunities begin to think of new ways of goingforward. It gives ownership to local people of their social

and economic development, based on the principlesof appreciating self-help and mobilising human andmaterial resources for a common cause on theprinciple of self-starter and community motivationfor identified needs and goals. ZAPU devolutionbuilds on appreciative inquiry which identifies andanalyses the existing strengths for the community byinstilling confidence in their own capacities and in-spiring them to take action to fulfill their socio-economic needs.There you get it, having a parliament at your

province. Email : thembamthethwa05@yahoo.co.uk

The ZAPU Devolution of powermodel explained – part 2 THE ZAPU MODEL OF GOVERNANCE BY DEVOLUTION OF POWER IS A PEOPLECENTRED APPROACH

BY MR THEMBA MTHETHWA

Mrs Toriso Phiriknown as cde Bvun-zayi Taona, was bornin 1959 in Beit Bridgeto Mr Nalana and MsEaster Moyo and ismarried to Mr Phiri.She went to ShasheSchool. Due to the de-mands of the libera-tion struggle MrsPhiri cut short her ed-

ucation in 1975 and crossed the border toBotswana to train as a ZIPRA cadre. Mrs Phiri was inspired to join the liberation

struggle by Cde Jane Ngwenya who happensto be her relative. “Political temperatures werenow at a boiling point, my parents were ZAPUcadres, and when the whites heard that so andso was in politics, they would come and tor-ture them severely, so we thought of leavingthe country, to go and train in order to liberateourselves from this madness”. Mrs Phiri said.Mrs Phiri crossed the border to Botswana

with seven others; there were 3 girls, herself in-cluded and four boys. In their midst were 3children. They went to a place called Goba-jangwe in Botswana where they slept at a MrSibhebhisa who was a great Tswana prophetwho later organized transport for them toBunoni. “we went to Pikwe and from there wewere taken to Francistown, we found our of-fices (ZAPU) closed since there were conflictsbetween Zanu, ZAPU, and Abel Muzorehwawas also trying to impose himself as THEZAPU leader.” Mrs Phiri said.In Botswana Mrs Phiri and colleagues stayed

in Zimbabwe house longer than they had ex-pected, until a certain time when they left forZambia where they stayed in NampundweZIPRA transit camp where they met a lot ofother cdes from different camps like Mboromaand other camps. They were trained with agroup of nearly 800 men and women.There were only 9 women and these were

Toriso Moyo-Phiri, Grace Noko, BelindaNdlovu, Alice Mabhena, Constance Ndebele,Audrey Muchachi, Dorothy Masuka, GladysMoyo and Jane Ndlovu and they were the firstgirls to be trained as guerillas in Zimbabwe. “As Nampundwe was a transitional camp

we were transferred to Mwembeshi where weopened the camp and stayed for 3months butat this time there was a motion to unite Zanlaand ZIPRA under the banner of ZIPA so wewere ferried to Mgagao in Tanzania. Thingswere tough in Mgagao as we differed in bothmilitary and political ideology with Zanla re-sulting in Zanla threatening us a lot” Mrs Phirisaid. “In order to keep us feet we used to haveour drills alone and Zanla cadres would bewatching doing nothing, this made them feelinferior to us and they started feeling jealousywhen they saw us toy-toying. When they askedus why we were doing it we used to lie to themand tell them that it was our training as we hadnot undergone training before”. Continued MrsPhiri. “Remember Zanla would just go for 3months training which was tantamount to gen-eral service training, and their training empha-sized more on political grooming than militarygrooming which was different from ZIPRA’s su-perior military training. ZIPRA training stressedmore on military expertise and left politics tothe politicians and a soldier will undergo 6 to12 months of hard training.” explained MrsPhiri with a beaming face. When ZIPRA went for their rehearsals Zanla

will panic and will not give them enough food.One day they went for training and when theycame back they found Zanla having eaten allthe food and when they asked about it, Zanlacombatants chopped one of their instructors’head by the name Leme using an axe and theystarted to bit them. “We were not armed butwe had sticks which we used as guns, so westarted to hit back, and Zanla had guns andgrenades. We will catch their grenades beforethey exploded and threw them back and thiswas now under the commandant of one of ourinstructor called Gagisa. We captured Zanla’sarmory but the discipline of ZAPU and ZIPRAmade us to cede back the armory and we de-cided to run away to a place called Hiringa.”

They travelled the whole night and they tooknearly two days travelling eating raw crops ontheir way to Hiringa. In Hiringa they weretaken to Morogoro square CC where they hadto restart training and went for 6 months train-ing.She says they merged military skills from

USSR, Cuba, Germany etc and she was ap-pointed as a section commander after comple-tion of the training at Morogoro. She wasappointed together with Grace Noko to be in-structors at Mwembeshi where cde Sigoge wasthe camp commander. The camp was shifteda little bit to the gorges because the enemy hadspotted their camps. She trained men as welland it was tough, however ZIPRA stressed onstrict military discipline, hence men will listeneven to female instructors. She never fought in the battle front but

stresses, ”The battle was fought in differentways like am telling you that I groomed sol-diers who transformed the skills I imparted onto them into real life situations and I was acommander in rear.” she said. She was latertransferred to Victory Camp(VC) where shewill spot and recruit those who will go for mil-itary training. She said that women who com-pleted training will be given different duties inthe rear to defend the territorial gains of ZIPRA.She was later appointed as the camp com-mander of Kafue where a lot of skilled person-nel will converge.She expressed anger when she talked about

the final out-come of the election in 1980where she feels Zanu cheated on ZAPU worseeven at integration where she feels that ZIPRAcadres were not treated fairly by the ministryof defence. She also expressed disappointmentbecause there were no female who were ap-pointed to the ZIPRA High Command, eventoday she feels there is no recognition on therole they played as women. She says that it’ssad because some people she commanded arenow claiming to be in the ZIPRA High Com-mand at their expense. She however pins herhopes on the current ZAPU leader DumisoDabengwa to mobilise and honour ZIPRA fe-male soldiers post the war and promote theminto ZIPRA High Command.Toriso says that Zanu, did it purposely with

Rhodesian Front to establish Assembly pointsclose by, even in Bulawayo, Entumbane whenthey actually knew that ZIPRA and Zanla willalways fight when they meet. She thinks thatRhodesian intelligence had a hand which trig-gered the Entumbane skirmishes betweenZIPRA and Zanla. She rubbishes the claims thatZIPRA never fought in the liberation struggle,”Fuel tanks in Harare were shelled by ZIPRAcontrary to the claims that they were shelled byZanla and ZIPRA have records as to who wereinvolved in that operation, viscount wasbrought by ZIPRA, some Zanla commanderswere trained by ZIPRA, so didn’t we fight? Ourliberation history has been distorted a lot and itpains us. We know that we won the electionsbut we were cheated by Zanu and the whites,furthermore they forcibly stole our archives,with our history. It’s also a lie that dissidentswere formed by ZIPRA, dissidents were formedby Britain using Zanu through unfair practices atintegration and demobilization, even after that.”Upon the closure of the interview, Toriso

who is now a ZAPU NPC member for Bul-awayo, says ZAPU went to the Unity Acordwith Zanu as a compromise act to stop thegenocide perpetrated by Zanu on innocentcivilians. Hence the Zimbabwe they wanted re-mained elusive under the ruler ship of Zanuand had to pull out of that accord, hence therevival of ZAPU under the leadership of Du-miso Dabengwa and has urged everyone torally behind their leader Dumiso Dabengwaeven at the forth coming congress. She hasurged those remaining in Zanu to Come backto ZAPU, “you feared to get into the accorduntil us, your commanders agreed to be part ofthe unity formation with Zanu, now we areout, come back, follow your commanders oth-erwise you are not protected there and you arechased away like dogs. If you remain in Zanuyou know you are a fake ex-combatant. Thosein ZAPU, lets push even harder, we are closerto home.”

Mrs Toriso Phiri: The unsung heroine of theliberation struggleBY BENARD MAGUGU

Thenjiwe Virginia Lesabe was born at HopeFountain near Bulawayo on January 5, 1932.

Thenjiwe mar-ried the late Rev-erend PeterLesabe of theAME church andthey had sevenchildren, six ofwhom are sur-viving.She enrolled at

Whitewater Pri-mary School forher primary ed-

ucation before proceeding to Hope Fountain Mis-sion to train as a teacher. She taught at LotshePrimary School in Makokoba, Bulawayo. She re-signed from teaching in 1959 and joined BantuMirror as a journalist.Between 1949 and 1953, Lesabe became an

active member of a social club known as GamaSigma Club in Bulawayo. The club was composedof intellectuals and others interested in socialwelfare matters including education for Africansin the country. Other prominent members of theclub were Samuel Ndebele, Chief Gampu, Abra-ham Nkiwane, Edward Ndlovu, Francis Nehwati,Benjamin Burombo and many others. The clubacted as a think tank.Lesabe was among the first people who joined

the Southern Rhodesian African National Congressin 1957. She showed keen interest in politicsbefore the formation of the SRANC and expressedher views publicly at local gatherings.In 1960, she was among the first women to

join the National Democratic Party (NDP), whosechairlady of the Women’s League was Anna Ny-athi. Lesabe mobilised many people in Mzilikaziand Babourfields and formed a branch knownas MZIBA (Mzilikazi/Babourfields).At the first inter-branch meeting of the Women’s

League members, she was elected chairlady ofthe Bulawayo district committee. In the meantime,she had been helping at the regional NDP officeheaded by the late Agrippa Mukhahlera. Latenational hero SikhwiliKhohliMoyo and currentZapu president Dr DumisoDabengwa and AmosNgwenya were also involved in the running ofthe party’s affairs.When Zapu was formed after the banning of

the NDP, party branches and districts were merelyrevamped without changing leadership, exceptat regional and national level. Bulawayo was themost active and strongest in terms of membership.Lesabe continued as the leader of the Zapuwomen’s league, ZAWU, until the party wasbanned in 1962.After the cancellation of an NDP public meeting

at Stanley Square in 1960, Lesabe led a publicdemonstration against the regime’s actions. Sheled a door-to-door campaign for people to jointhe demonstration. There was a massive responseto her call. The demonstration went on for threedays, during which property, including beer halls,were attacked by protestors. The demonstrationspread to the Midlands.Lesabe was also involved in the massive unrest

activities code-named “Zhi” during the sixties.During one such incident, Manwele Bar inMakokoba was invaded and barricaded by youths

and burnt down. Police used tear gas on theyouths and arrested Lesabe and others includingEnock Ndlovu and Dezzy Ngwenya. They werethrown into police vehicles and taken to RossCamp and detained in an open area next to thefence, with tall grass. A woman only rememberedas MaSibanda, and was part of the detainees,was heavily pregnant and started experiencinglabour pains and delivered a baby boy in thegrassy area.Lesabe led a call out for the police to come

and help the woman. When they refused, Lesabeshouted: “What if it was your wife?” The guard,apparently struck by what she said, went awayand brought two nurses who attended to herand the baby and ferried them to hospital.The groups of protesters were taken to Grey

Street prison, where Lesabe kept talking to themto be brave and not to fear fighting for theircountry.On several occasions before and after inde-

pendence, Lesabe and the late VP JW Msika toldmembers of the party how Dr Joshua Nkomowas chosen to lead the first national organisation,the ANC, after an agreement between the Bul-awayo leaders and Harare leaders at the time, toform a national political organisation, and howother intellectuals in Harare had rejected pleasfor them to lead the ANC.After it was banned, Zapu operated as an un-

derground movement. Lesabe played a very keyrole in the underground operations, including re-cruiting youths for guerrilla training outside thecountry. At the formation of the People’s CaretakerCouncil in 1963, she was elected to the nationalcouncil. The PCC was not really a political party,but an organizing vehicle for Zapu to escape theban, and to counter splinter movements. ThePCC was also banned in 1964.Between 1970 and 1974, she toured all provinces

in the country where she addressed several meet-ings informing members about Zapu programmesof the liberation struggle and advised them ofwhat was to be done.In 1975, she was elected to the National Executive

as the head of ZAWU at a congress of the ANC(Zimbabwe). The same congress elected the lateJosiah Chinamano as vice president and the lateJW Msika as secretary general.That same year, the late Lesabe and Ariston

Chambati, A Jirira and others went to Lusaka,Zambia, accompanying the president of Zapu,Dr Joshua Nkomo, to hold talks with PresidentKenneth Kaunda. She spent days as a guest atthe State House in Lusaka.In 1975, she was back in Lusaka with a delegation

for the funeral of Jason Ziyaphapha Moyo. Sheand Mrs Dlomo from Gweru remained behindafter the funeral for medical check-ups becauseof pains caused by arrests and detentions by theRhodesian regime. The party sent them to theDemocratic Republic of Germany (GDR), EastGermany at the time, for further medical treatment.After treatment, Lesabe returned back to Zimbabwethrough Zambia to continue fighting for inde-pendence.When the struggle intensified and the regime

became more vicious, the rest of the Zapu lead-ership fled the country to Zambia through what-ever means and ways they could. Lesabe left Bu-lawayo with her children secretly. She spentseven days hiding in parked goods trains at the

Bulawayo railway station with her children,waiting for the opportunity to escape.She managed to safely make it to Francistown,

Botswana, hidden in a goods train using a planput together by a Zapu member who worked forthe railways. The concerned Zapu member isstill alive and stays in Binga district.After independence, Lesabe gave cattle to the

Zapu member who helped her escape when shereturned home at independence as a ‘thank you’for saving her life and that of her children. Otherswho left the country through the same arrange-ment include Chief Vezi Maduna of Insiza, ElijahMoyo and Elias Hananda.While in Zambia, Lesabe was appointed into

the Zimbabwe People’s Revolutionary Council.Because of her capacity and experience, the partyoccasionally assigned her to missions to foreigncountries in Asia, USA, Latin America, Europeand African countries.One of her first missions was to tour Scandi-

navian states to appeal for assistance for Zapu,Zimbabwe’s authentic liberation movement. Herappeal for assistance was also on behalf of otherauthentic liberation movements, such as ANC ofSouth Africa and Namibia’s Swapo.In Finland, she visited many cities to address

meetings. During her next visit to Helsinki, shewas with a Swapo delegation led by the party’spresident, Dr Sam Nunjoma. After a joint Swapoand Zapu appeal, support groups started pro-grammes to raise funds and materials for Zapuand Swapo.On 17 August 1979, large quantities of goods

which included medicine were shipped to bothliberation movements.At independence, Lesabe was elected MP for

Matobo district in Matabeleland South on a PF-Zapu ticket. She later represented Umzingwanein Parliament. She was again elected chairpersonof ZAWU at Zapu’s 1984 congress.Lesabe witnessed all the Gukurahundi atrocities.

She was one of the brave Zapu leaders whorisked their own lives by visiting affected com-munities to witness the massacres and was laterinvolved in the Zapu negotiating team with Zanuto end the atrocities.After the unity accord between Zapu and Zanu,

she became deputy minister of Tourism. Shewould later serve as minister of education andculture, and minister of national affairs and em-ployment creation.In Zanu PF, she became deputy secretary for

women’s affairs and served in the national staffcommittee chaired by the late VP Simon Muzenda.After the death of Sally Mugabe, she was appointedsecretary for women’s affairs until 2004 whenshe remained a member of the party’s politburo.In 2009, she decided to go back to her roots to

rejoin the revived Zapu and was elected chair-person of the Zapu Council of Elders at theparty’s 9thcongress held in Bulawayo in 2010.She was one of the most senior and dedicatedwomen in Zapu who openly declared their deci-sion to leave Zanu PF to rejoin Zapu and quicklygot to serious work. She visited virtually allprovinces of Zimbabwe and Zapu’s South Africaprovince to drum up support and settle disputes.She was a courageous comrade, truly one de-

serving hero status. Long Live the spirit of Comrade Thenjiwe

Lesabe Long Live!

Comrade Thenjiwe Lesabe (05.02.1932 – 11.02.2011) ADAPTED BY CAKES VUNDLA

www.zapu.org

Iphi inkululeko –Iphi inkululekoku-lumuziBY NTANDOKAYISE MCBETH NDLOVU

Ingabe ngubani onga phendula na ?Iphi inkululeko kul’umuzi?Ingabe inkululeko Inje ?

Inkululeko siphenduke uncindezeloUbaba uzembese isigogo semvu .Ongesona isilima uyazibonela okwenzakalayoIzinja zidala ubudlwengudlwengu imihlalamalanga. Baqinisile nxa bethi udiwolufuz’imbiza .

Asazi koqedwa ngonjaniAbantwana abalahliweyo bazakhala kubani ?Sebephenduke umhlambi kazelusileNgeqiniso inkululeko isiphenduke uncindezelo

Mamo!! Nanto selitshonileBaqinisile obabamkhul’umabethi wawunganjeWayetsho eyibonile okaTshaka, umfokaSenzangakhonaEthi leli seliyobuswa zinyoni zasendle

Kuzekukhulume izimumu, kuzwiwe nezacutheKufe logogekileyo nxa bebuzaIphi inkululeko kwelabo babamkhulu?Donsi bani luntinya longonileNgiyabuza.

POSITION FULL NAME1. President Dr Dumiso Dabengwa2. Vice President Ms Emelia Mukaratirwa3. Secretary General Dr Ralph Mguni4. Alternate Secretary General Dr Strike Mkandla5. Treasurer General Mr Jacob J. Dube6. Alternate Treasurer General Mr Orchard Nyathi7. Secretary for Mobilization and Organization Mr Fairchild Muradzi8. Secretary for Education Mr Ocean Mlaga9. Secretary for Economic Development Mr Lloyd Masarirambi10. Secretary for Information, Publicity and Marketing Mr.Mjobisa Noko11. Secretary for Health and Welfare Dr Themba T. Ndebele 12. Secretary for Legal Affairs Mr Vuyile Mpofu13. Secretary for Security Mr Echem Nkala14. Secretary for People Living With Disabilities Mr Dumisani Nyoni15. Secretary for Labour and Social Services Ms Laura Makuzva16. Secretary for International Affairs Mr Edwin Moyo17. Secretary for Culture, Spiritual and Traditional Affairs Mr Melusi Gumbo18. Secretary for Transport and Logistics Mr Kudzai Mashingaidze19. Secretary for Lands and Agriculture Vacant20. Secretary for Policy and Strategy Future Msebele

DEPUTIES21. Dep. Secretary for Information, Publicity and Marketing Mr Patrick Ndlovu22. Deputy Secretary for International Affairs Dr Lawrence Mbobo23. Deputy Secretary for Education Mr Paul Masike24. Deputy Secretary for Mobilization and Organisation Mr Ernest Ndlovu25. Deputy Secretary for Economic Development Ms Mable Mutshakatshi

NATIONAL COUNCIL OF ELDERS26. National Chair of Council of Elders Elder William Madziva27. Vice National Chair of Council of Elders Elder Jeremiah Khabo 28. Secretary National Council of Elders Elder Roma Nyathi

ZAWU29. National Chairperson Mrs Virginia Dube30. National Youth Front Thuto Mavula

NATIONAL PEOPLES COUNCIL31. NPC Chairperson Mr Isaac Mabuka32. NPC Secretary Vacant

REGIONAL CO-ORDINATORS33. Northern Region Mr Derek Katsenga34. Southern Region Mr Mark Mbayiwa35 .Diaspora Region Felix Silundika

ELECTIONS DIRECTORATE35. Northern Region Mr Albert Kiss36. Southern Region Mr Patron Nketa

NEC COMMITTEE MEMBERSTo be filled laterSECRETARY TO NEC Mr Stephen Mbizo

USEFUL WEBSITESzapu.orgzimprogressivenes.combulawayo24.com

ZAPU NATIONAL EXECUTIVE MEMBERS AS OF 06 JUNE 2015

Why Africa Why BY BONGANI NCUBE

Why are these cowards called comradesWhy are these zeros called heroesWhy are these thieves called chiefsWhy are these killers called kings Why are these riggers called winnersWhy are these dissidents called presidentsWhy Africa Why

Gangsters with guns are called governments They pave their way by bullets and not ballotsThey call their confusion a revolutionTheir corruption is called a productionWhile they fill their stomachs full till they lookfoolishOur poverty is called powerOur pains are called our gainsWhy Africa Why

Why are these evil perpetrators calledprotectorsWhy are these dictators called doctorsWhy are these liars called lawyersWhy are these cheaters called teachers Their poly tricks are called politics Their tribalism is called nationalismThey are the richest leaders from the poorestcountries They blame everybody else except themselvesfor their own mistakesThey cut our legs before they race with us Then they declare themselves winnersThey prefer to cut our mouths than to answerour questions Why Africa WhyWhy are these criminals honoured

By-election Campaign