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‘Mahoso, Mugabe dictators’

News
There was drama yesterday in Parliament after Mbizo MP Settlement Chikwinya labelled Tafataona Mahoso a dictator working on behalf of another dictator but was “far worse off than the President of Zimbabwe”. Chikwinya was moving a motion to have the Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe (BAZ), chaired by Mahoso, dissolved because it was allegedly illegally constituted […]

There was drama yesterday in Parliament after Mbizo MP Settlement Chikwinya labelled Tafataona Mahoso a dictator working on behalf of another dictator but was “far worse off than the President of Zimbabwe”.

Chikwinya was moving a motion to have the Broadcasting Authority of Zimbabwe (BAZ), chaired by Mahoso, dissolved because it was allegedly illegally constituted and was issuing broadcasting licences unfairly.

“We have thieves and an illegal board sitting around issuing licences and we are not going to have a board that is going to give licences to clones of ZBC and a board which was unconstitutionally appointed,” said Chikwinya.

“Mahoso executes strategies of a dictator on behalf of another dictator and he is far worse off than the President of Zimbabwe.”

The MP raised the ire of Zanu PF MPs who descended on him like a ton of bricks in a verbal avalanche.

Zanu PF legislators Kudakwashe Bhasikiti, Paul Mazikana and Paul Munyaradzi Mangwana immediately stood up and raised a point of order demanding that Chikwinya withdraws his statement alleging President Robert Mugabe was a dictator.

Bhasikiti went further to threaten Zanu PF MPs would stop the entire debate if Chikwinya did not withdraw the statement.

Mangwana, who is Zanu PF MP for Chivi Central, also called for a point of order with the Deputy Speaker of the House of Assembly, Nomalanga Khumalo.

He argued Chikwinya had called Mahoso a henchman of a dictator and would even prefer President Mugabe to be chairman of BAZ to Mahoso.

But Khumalo ruled Mangwana and other Zanu PF members who protested out of order. She nonetheless asked Chikwinya to withdraw his statement. The MP withdrew the statement albeit under protest.

Chikwinya went further to describe Mahoso as a Zanu PF appendage who contributed lengthy articles in State media and said the BAZ chairman was once described by Zanu PF spokesperson Rugare Gumbo as “carrying out voluntary work for Zanu PF in public newspapers”.

The Mbizo MP challenged the composition of the BAZ board, saying some of its members were not fit to sit on the board responsible for issuing licences.

“A member of the BAZ board, Susan Makore, is managing director at Mighty Movies owned by Supa Mandiwanzira who was issued with one of the licences under AB Communications and that is already a conflict of interest,” Chikwinya argued. “We also have Colonel Reuben Mqwayi, a

retired soldier, Charity Moyo, who was once a Zanu PF youth while at university, and other examples like Vimbai Chivaura, who anchors in ZBC programmes clearly designed for Zanu PF.”

The MP said even the fact that Zimpapers, a State-controlled entity, got one of the licences clearly showed the new commercial radio stations would be used as a front for Zanu PF ideologies ahead of elections.

Seconder of the motion, Zaka Central MP Harrison Mudzuri, said the issuance of licences to the two players exposed institutionalised corruption by the Minister of Media, Information and Publicity, Webster Shamu.

“I urge the Anti-Corruption Commission to investigate how BAZ was constituted and make its findings.

One is forced to conclude the issuance of licences was a political gimmick meant to cheat Sadc and the AU into believing that now the government was fulfilling provisions of the GPA to open up airwaves.

The two would be handy propaganda tools during elections and it would be impossible to hold free and fair elections,” said Mudzuri.

Mberengwa East MP Makhosini Hlongwane (Zanu PF) argued the MDC-T MPs’ presentations against the issuance of the licences by BAZ were a charade and flawed.

He said Makore’s appointment was not in violation of good corporate governance as she had immediately recused herself from the interviews to issue the licences since Mighty Movies was an interested party.

But Highfield West MP Simon Hove (MDC-T) said the fact that licences were issued to people with the same ideologies as State- controlled media was like placing Zimbabwe into a “kwashiorkor” of information where people were constantly fed with the same deadly diet.

Retired soldier, Charity Moyo, who was once a Zanu PF youth while at university, and other examples like Vimbai Chivaura, who anchors in ZBC programmes clearly designed for Zanu PF.”

The MP said even the fact that Zimpapers, a State-controlled entity, got one of the licences clearly showed the new commercial radio stations would be used as a front for Zanu PF ideologies ahead of elections.

Seconder of the motion, Zaka Central MP Harrison Mudzuri, said the issuance of licences to the two players exposed institutionalised corruption by the Minister of Media, Information and Publicity, Webster Shamu.

“I urge the Anti-Corruption Commission to investigate how BAZ was constituted and make its findings.

One is forced to conclude the issuance of licences was a political gimmick meant to cheat Sadc and the AU into believing that now the government was fulfilling provisions of the GPA to open up airwaves.

The two would be handy propaganda tools during elections and it would be impossible to hold free and fair elections,” said Mudzuri.

Mberengwa East MP Makhosini Hlongwane (Zanu PF) argued the MDC-T MPs’ presentations against the issuance of the licences by BAZ were a charade and flawed.

He said Makore’s appointment was not in violation of good corporate governance as she had immediately recused herself from the interviews to issue the licences since Mighty Movies was an interested party.

But Highfield West MP Simon Hove (MDC-T) said the fact that licences were issued to people with the same ideologies as State- controlled media was like placing Zimbabwe into a “kwashiorkor” of information where people were constantly fed with the same deadly diet.