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THE National Peace and Reconciliation Commission (NPRC) has raised concern over cases of violence involving machetes which have resurfaced in mining areas in Matabeleland South Province.

The commission has attributed the resurgence of violence to laxity and rogue elements within the police force.

Four miners were hospitalised after they were attacked by a machete gang while at Vova Mine in Gwanda on Friday.

Speaking yesterday during a Churches Converging on Conflict and Peace (CCCOP) inception meeting in Gwanda which was attended by the Gwanda local peace committee, NPRC Commissioner

Leslie Ncube said the commission had received numerous reports of corruption by police at Colleen Bawn and West Nicholson police stations.

Comm Ncube said the commission visited the Gwanda Provincial Hospital on Saturday to see people that were attacked by a machete gang at Vova Mine on Friday as part of their assessment.

“As a commission we are concerned by issues of machete gangs which have resurfaced in Matabeleland South Province in areas such as Vova. Members of the security sector who are charged constitutionally with enforcing laws shouldn’t be found sleeping on duty. People can’t be moving around with machetes and attacking people and then walk scot free. We have security around us and one of its thrusts is to smell and detect where these criminals will strike. These gangs come in vehicles in a manner that would have been well organised and they do this under the watchful eye of the police which is disturbing.

“The reaction from police is very slow. For those who are sleeping on duty heads will roll. I believe that the State hasn’t run out of resources and on that note decisive measures will be taken and those who are not performing their duties will go home. The police have a mandate to protect the people of Zimbabwe and they have to fulfill it. If people continue being attacked in this manner then it means we are not safe as people,” he said.

Comm Ncube said they had raised the Commissioner-General of the Police and were set to hold a closed door meeting with him on Friday to discuss the matter of rogue police officers and laxity within law enforcement agents. He said unnecessary loss of life through violence had to be stopped.

Comm Ncube said they had received numerous complainants from residents in Matabeleland South Province on police corruption, particularly in West Nicholson and Colleen Bawn areas.

He urged the media to expose such corrupt tendencies. Comm Ncube said the media had a role to amplify the voice of the masses.

He applauded churches for their numerous efforts to ensure peace prevailed in communities.

Comm Ncube urged the Gwanda Local Peace Committee to continue with its peace building efforts. He challenged the committee to address various issues of conflict which were being recorded in the community.

The commission, Comm Ncube said, was working together with Zimbabwe Christian Alliance to promote issues of peace building in Matabeleland South Province.

Also speaking during the same meeting, Zimbabwe Christian Alliance (ZCA) Executive Director, Reverend Useni Sibanda said the CCCOP programme sought to address issues of conflict within communities.

“As the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance we have been working with local peace committees to address issues of conflict within communities. The programme that we had initially launched under the banner Churches Convergence on Peace (CCOP) has come to an end and now we are extending the programme for a further one year 18 months under the name Churches Converging on Conflict and Peace (CCCOP). This programme seeks to promote peace after realising that trend of violence in mining areas. Further than that we have realised that there are conflicts that have emerged as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic and more work has to be done.

“Our objective is to ensure that communities are able to transform conflict and revert to dialogue. We are going to retrain local peace committees so that they can address new forms of conflict that have arisen. We will be working closely with the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission,” he said.

Also speaking during the meeting ZCA programmes officer Mrs Runyararo Chilenje said one of their objective was to strengthen and capacitate local peace committees as they had a crucial role to play in promoting peace within communities.

She said they were working with three local peace committees in the province in Gwanda, Matobo and Plumtree. Mrs Chilenje said each committee was supposed to develop its own peace plans.

The Chronicle

A 24-year-old artisanal miner died on the spot after being brutally speared, axed, and hacked with machetes multiple times, in a suspected gang war in Kwekwe last Friday.

Police have arrested six artisanal miners including three teenagers following the gruesome murder of Edson Jephias of Redcliff town.

Gold turf wars at surrounding mines are believed to be behind the bloody clash.

The police have launched a manhunt for seven other suspects who fled from the scene after the horrific killing.

Midlands provincial police spokesperson Inspector Joel Goko confirmed receiving the report but referred this publication to the national police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi for more details.

“Yes, I can confirm that we have arrested six accused people in connection with this murder and seven are still at large. We are appealing to members of the public who might have information that might lead to the arrest of the seven accused persons to approach their nearby police station so that we arrest them,” he said.

Asst Comm Nyathi was not available for comment.

Jephias, police sources said, was allegedly drinking beer in Kwekwe at a local bar with 14 members of his gang when one Tatenda arrived in his brother’s vehicle and reported that the car had been stoned by members of a rival gang known as the Grigambas which the accused persons belong to.

Jephias and his crew allegedly teamed up and went to seek revenge against the Grigambas resulting in the two gangs fighting with dangerous weapons.

The source said Jephias died after being stabbed with spears, cut up with machetes, and axed leading during the fight.

“Arrested were Cabinet Kamurai (17), Cephas Mansami (16), brothers Tafadzwa (26), and Obey Nhenga (27), Tobias Ncube (21) and Imidza Wasarira (16) all from Gokwe South,” said the source.

“The police have launched a manhunt for the other seven members of the Grigambas gang who fled from the scene.”

The Chronicle

Officials at Africa University have raised a red flag over the encroachment of artisanal mining activities which are polluting the main water source for their campus agriculture farm.

Addressing journalists at a community reporting press club, Africa University’s Dean of Students George Miti said continuous illegal mining activities on the campus doorstep are becoming a menace.

Miti said they are having sleepless nights over the proximity of illegal gold mining activities.

He said the use of chemicals by the artisanal miners in Mutare River have caused sedimentation and siltation of the river affecting produce from the farm.

“We have a farm at the university where we grow our crops but we are having challenges as we get water from Mutare River. Our pipes are being vandalized because of polluted water due to the illegal mining activities, it’s affecting produce on our farming.

“Sometimes we end up having no network because cables which are underground would have been destroyed, and we are also worried of veld fires.

“We noticed rampant illegal gold mining and we have sought to engage. The mining activities are a mere stone’s throw away for our campus. There are various activities which are affecting us negatively.

“We are witnessing veld fires near the company, and we are in danger because the campus might catch fire.

“The water we use to irrigate from Mutare River has turned deep brown due to the chemicals which artisanal miners use, we even lost an upright pivot after using it for only one year,” said Miti.

Local representative Mutasa South MP Regai Tsunga (MDC Alliance) addressing the same gathering said these issues have been brought to his attention and should be treated as critical demanding all stakeholders’ input.

Tsunga said the proliferation of mining activities are borne out of economic hardships faced by unemployed youths.

He said he has already written a letter to the government and called for an all stakeholders meeting to address illegal mining activities at the campus.

“The issue of illegal mining is a big issue, illegal mining is difficult to stop because of the high unemployment rate in the country is at 90 percent with the youths the most affected group,” he said

“I have already written a letter to the government so that we correct the menace at Africa University and Mutasa district as well, l am calling for an all stakeholders meeting so that we address the menace,” he said.

Tsunga told the gathering that he has already received a complainant from the University of the Illegal Mining Activities_263Chat