Draft constitution allows youths to contest any election

Young people have expressed delight with the fact that the draft constitution has no age limits for those who wish to contest in elections, saying this grants them the opportunity to contest as candidates for council, parliamentary and presidential elections. This among other things, they argued would enhance their participation in community and national processes.

These sentiments were echoed at a Youth Meeting convened by the National Youth Development Trust (NYDT) in the Pumula North suburb of Bulawayo. The meeting was held to discuss the contents of the draft constitution which has found its way into the hands of the media, political parties and civic society despite the fact that it has not officially been released by the Zimbabwe Constitution Select Committee (COPAC). The draft constitution stipulates that everyone who is at the legal age of participating in elections is also eligible to be a candidate.

Youths most affected by de-industrialisation

The following article was submitted to NYDT by a young resident of Bulawayo. 

The closure of industries in Bulawayo has made youths resort to illicit deals as a way of generating income.

Such petty dealings and activities have degraded the values and the moral fibre of the society. As evidenced in cases where the youths have turned into prostitution and thievery with an aim of making ends meet. Such cases cannot be ignored especially by any serious nation that hopes to invest in the youths who constitute the majority of the population.

Owing to the various challenges in the industrial sector, levels of migration have increased owing to high levels of unemployment. A case in point is the high levels of illegal cross boarders in Beitbridge and Plumtree border posts. According to the news statistics, nearly 2000 people cross the border to South Africa whilst the same figure is noted on those that use official routes. Such statistics paint a gruesome picture on the international picture of Zimbabwe and shows an economy that has dismally failed to set out policies to effectively support its own people.

In the political scene de-industrialisation has further increased the susceptibility of the youths to be used as pawns to fulfil political gains. The reduced space of economic survival for youths has further ensured that they slowly depend on the mercy of political parties or political candidates. This scenario has left youths vulnerable to exploitation by the political structure, in some cases being forced to ferment violence and intimidate other political players and citizens.

 It is such cases that clearly show that the vibrancy and energy of the youths has not been fruitfully channelled towards economic growth, but rather, has been used for unorthodox practices. Therefore, far from viewing the aspect of de-industrialisation in the ethno centricism matra nor in the leftist state, the nation as a whole ought to view its ripple effects to the most populous constituency, the youths.  

Youths turned away for bringing Affidavits to register as voters

Youths from Bulawayo are deeply frustrated over the change in positions by the Registrar General when it comes to initial voter registration. This came to light after groups of Young people from Magwegwe and Nkulumane respectively went to the registrar’s office to register for the first time to become voters but were turned away for bringing affidavits.

“We went to the registrar’s office on Friday to register to become voters, we had everything that was required to get ourselves into the voters’ roll however things did not go as planned as we were told that affidavits were not required for the process but written letters. We were turned away for bringing affidavits which legally speaking are much better than a written letter,” said a concerned youth who chose to remain anonymous.

In a statement which appeared in The Zimbabwean in 2011, Tobaiwa Mudede, the Registrar General said,”one of the requirements needed for one to register as a voter are: A Sworn statement by employer of applicant confirming applicant's address and any other information or document sufficient to ascertain the applicant's residence. While rural dwellers would need a confirmation letter from the chief, headman or village head, farm owner or mine owner”. 

An Independent Commission is the Answer: Youths

Young people have called on the Inclusive Government to look into transforming the organ on National Healing, Reconciliation and Integration (ONHRI), into an independent Truth, Justice and Reconciliation commission with quasi Judicial powers as this will enable it to fulfil its mandate which is enunciated in article VII of the Global Political Agreement (GPA).

Young people, speaking during a District peace workshop in Gwanda said that ONHRI in its current state is nothing more than a tool to be used by political parties in the inclusive government to gain political mileage. It has failed to deliver tangible results to communities that have suffered from different phases of both state sponsored and politically motivated violence.

“Devolution of power an idea whose time has come”, Hon. Moyo

Minister of State Enterprises and Parastatals, Honourable Godern Moyo has said it is inevitable that devolution of power should be enshrined in the Zimbabwean constitution and as such debates should now be centred on the nature of devolution that Zimbabweans want.

Speaking at the recently held conference on Devolution and Democracy, Hon. Moyo dismissed anti-devolutionists saying their arguments are fallacious and illogical. He also dismissed the notion that devolution will bring about ethnic division saying Zimbabwe has had the worst human rights abuses under a centralised state. Making reference to Rwanda that adopted devolution as a solution to a genocide, he said;

“Devolution is in fact a solution to division because it recognises plurality and multiplicity of voices and thoughts. The centralised system has been marginalising some sectors of the country and that is why we have people who are now even calling for cessation.”

Moyo said that the argument that Zimbabwe is too small for devolution is unfounded because countries far much smaller both in geography and demography than Zimbabwe are devolved states, a case in point are countries like Ghana, Uganda, Rwanda as well as Switzerland. “Even in terms of the economy Zimbabwe cannot be considered small because in terms of per capita it is one of the strongest economies in Africa,” he added.    

Devolution of power has been identified as one of the issues that deserve space in the new constitution as it will lead Zimbabwe to a modern democratic state.

Giving a legal analysis that is focused on minimum conditions to make devolution work, Dr. Alex Magaisa underlined some of the salient cons associated with devolution of power. Shifting of responsibilities could lead to central government neglecting some of its duties and blaming the local authorities. Dr. Magaisa said that by devolving power, government would be allowing people to be part of making decisions that affect them and it is a good thing that the issue is being discussed during a defining moment in Zimbabwe’s history.

“I call this a defining moment because Zimbabwe’s governance system will never be the same again after COPAC completes the mandate of leading the constitution making process,” said Dr. Magaisa, adding that there is the assumption that devolution is about functions only but it should be about both power and functions. He emphasised that systems are usually not the problem but the individuals given the obligation to exercise power. Therefore it becomes imperative that as the nation debates on devolution, effective systems of governance should be implemented so as curb effects of mismanagement of resources.

The concept of devolution was interrogated by academics, politicians and civic leaders at a conference held under the theme, “Deepening Democracy Through Devolution” where it was agreed that development on its own is not enough and democracy without development is equally void.   The conference was convened by the NYDT in partnership with BPRA and Bulawayo Agenda.       

Devolution is Economically Practical in Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe’s resource base has the potential to sustain all provinces in the country under a devolved state as long as there is accountability in the exploitation of those resources, a renowned economist, Dr. Eric Bloch has said.

Speaking during a Zimbabwe Devolution and Democracy conference in Bulawayo last weekend, Dr. Block said, “There is a general misconception that Harare is the major economic base of Zimbabwe but this is only because it is where all the diplomats, senior government officials and company headquarters are. The glowing picture of economic activity is true for each province in the country.”

He said that Zimbabwe’s economy has the potential of being the fifth strongest in Africa because of the immense resource base and geographic advantage that it is located to be the ideal supplier of sub-Saharan Africa. He highlighted the availability of minerals, tourism, agriculture, manufacturing as well a highly skilled labour base as key elements of the economy that make the economy potentially one of the most vibrant in the continent.

Dr. Eric Block making a presentation during the conference

During the conference a number of concerns were raised with regards to the concentration of administrative and financial authority in the capital with a negative impact of even development in Zimbabwe. Speaking at the same conference, Mr Farai Maguwu, an Alison Des Forges award winner, said that “The politicisation of natural resources has led to those resources only benefiting a few individuals in Zimbabwe.  There is no accountability in the current centralised system of governance to the extent that no one knows how much of those minerals are being extracted. Those natural resources are currently not even benefiting the local communities in which they are extracted,” he said.

There was a general consensus that a localised government is closer to the people and is therefore bound to be more efficient in addressing their needs.

The Zimbabwe Devolution and Democracy conference that was organised by NYDT, in partnership with BPRA and Bulawayo Agenda ran under the theme “Deepening Democracy Through Devolution”. The Conference saw renowned academics, government officials and civic actors interrogating the concept of devolution as a way of facilitating effective and efficient governance of Zimbabwe.

Young women call for increase in resource allocation to VFUs

Young women in Bulawayo have called for the increase of manpower and allocation of more resources to the Victim Friendly Units (VFU) of all police stations, as a way of facilitating easier reporting of cases of gender-based violence.

Speaking at a young women’s round table meeting to commemorate 16 days of activism against gender based violence, the young women said that although the introduction of the VFUs by government was a noble idea, a lot still needed to be done, particularly with regards to channelling more resources to the unit to make it more efficient.