Devoluton -Moving Foward

Moving Forward With Devolution By Dumisani O .Nkomo I would like to argue that whilst marginal and indeed incremental changes have been gained in as far as devolution of power is concerned ,devolved governance and service delivery will not work unless other pillars ,structures ,processes and laws are put in place . Importantly With the wrong human capital in place in the form of councillors, ,members of parliament ,senators ,provincial executives and critically provincial bureaucrats , devolution will become a mere mirage . The new constitution chiefly [chapter 14 ]merely outlines the framework of devolution of power but is does not give full expression to the concept .Nonetheless chapter fourteen expounds on the various stratas of governance from provincial to local government level that should give expression to the principle or concept of devolution of power .What is critical to note is that a lot of issues pertaining to devolution of power are left to acts of parliament in order to have practical expression and legislative application .This includes the establishment ,structure and staff of provincial and metropolitan councils ,the election of metropolitan council mayors and procedures of local authorities .In order for devolution to work properly therefore it is imperative to put in place enabling acts whilst at the same time re aligning current laws to the new architecture. Devolution of power and decentralization of services will not work as long as the current hazy framework remains and subsidiary laws do not give full expression ,meaning and practise to it .If laws governing water ,energy ,natural resources ,mining ,industry ,local government ,investment still maintain a highly centralized nature it is likely that devolution of power may be decorative and cosmetic It must be noted that though the draft gives a fairly good framework at a conceptual level ,this needs to be translated into praxis in relevant laws governing local government ,service delivery and resource allocation .Principles contained in the founding principles can be a starting point as the founding provisions recognize devolution and decentralization of government power and functions ,the three tiers of government [national ,provincial and local government ].Importantly the national objective of compelling the “state and institutions and agencies to take practical measures to ensure that all local authorities have equitable access to resources “ must be given practical effect in the enabling act and the rural and urban councils acts should be aligned accordingly to reflect this new socio political reality . Enabling Finance Act Devolution of power would be meaningless without dealing with issues of allocation of financial and natural resources .To this end Chapter 17 of the new constitution envisages “the equitable sharing of national revenue between “central , local and provincial and l tiers of government .The allocation of revenue between provincial and local government is left to an act of parliament . It is thus incumbent upon the incoming minister of finance and parliament to put in place such legislation in order to give full and practical expression to devolution financial functions . Devolution and a Competent Bureaucracy I must hasten to add that even with the most impressive pieces of legislation or policies, devolution may not work if the bureaucrats at national ,provincial and local level are not willing and able to the implement it .One of the greatest failures of post independent Zimbabwe is not our failure to craft effective policies and laws but rather the failure to implement policies .One only has to look at the impressive arsenal of economic blue prints since independents to get an idea what I am talking about .We had Growth With Equity [1980’s] ,Economic structural Adjustment Programme ,ZIMPREST ,the Millennium Economic Development Plan ,the National Economic Development Plan ,the Short Term Emergency Recovery Programme ,the Medium Term Plan amongst others but alas most of these have been “pie in the sky and not sadza on the plate “ We have been good on description and eloquent on detail but thin on implementation .Zimbabwe needs competent, able and willing people leading the civil service at relevant levels otherwise devolution just will not work Lastly in order for devolution to work Zimbabweans need to elect legislators with the capacity to debate ,enact and monitor the relevant legislation .The elected legislators and appointed ministers who are sympathetic to the cause of devolution of power must ensure that the legislative agenda of the next parliament reflects the imperative of laws aligned to a devolved dispensation . To conclude all I am saying is that the current framework of devolution in the new constitution is insufficient to deliver the desired order outside of certain fundamentals and imperatives . Nkomo is the Chief Executive Officer of Habakkuk Trust and an activist He can be contacted on dumisani.nkomo@gmail.com

provincial and local governments critical

Local and Provincial Governments Key To Good Governance and Development By Dumisani O. Nkomo The new constitution provides a reasonable framework for the country to put in place functional and effective provincial ,metropolitan and local government structures .There is a need for the country to move swiftly to ensure that the three tiers of government created by the new constitution work effectively and efficiently bringing the desired output o good governance ,development ,equitable distribution of resources and citizen participation in decision making processes Tiers Of Government The new constitution for the first time in the history of Zimbabwe acknowledges three tiers of government namely national government ,provincial and metropolitan government and local government with the later consisting o urban and rural councils .It is however necessary to unpack the roles ,responsibilities and parameters of these different tiers of government to avoid duplication ,confusion ,bureaucracy and in ultimately policy inertia .The devolution of power contained therein may be stillborn if those mandated to implement it do not understand how it should work or if there is conflict of laws and policies or the absence of enabling legislation . Good Governance It is my belief that if these three tires of government especially provincial and local government function effectively this will lead to good governance and ultimately socio economic development of various regions ,provinces and districts especially areas which have been subject to historic marginalization such as the Midlands ,Matabeleland ,Masvingo and parts of Manicaland . The new constitution attempts to capture good governance as reflected by a state “that adopts and implements policies and legislation to develop efficiency ,competence ,accountability ,transparency ,personal integrity and financial probity in Government at every level and in every public institution [Chapter 2.2 Zimbabwe Constitution]. .Good governance should not be an abstract academic concept but that which delivers bread and butter to the people through the provision of basic services e. g education ,health ,water ,electricity as well as access to resources .Some of these are entrenched in Chapter Four of the new constitution as socio economic rights . Local Community Development and Empowerment Meaningful local development and empowerment of local communities can only take place if the socio political architecture at provincial and local level gives expression to these ideals and aspirations through the existence of enabling participatory ,decision making structures ,policies and laws .This is captured brilliantly in chapter 2.8 of the new constitution which compels all state institutions at every level to ensure : 1.Local communities benefit from local resources in their areas . 2.Promote self reliance and private initiate 3.Bring about balances development of different areas of Zimbabwe . 4.Rectify imbalances resulting from past policies and practices . A central government and state architecture that ensures that the above mentioned constitutional principles are adhered to will provide a sound framework for provincial/metropolitan councils and local councils to function . Structure and Composition of Provincial and Metropolitan Councils It is an emerging reality that most Zimbabweans even those who should be in the know have no idea about the composition ,structure and powers of the new provincial councils or metropolitan councils as is the case with Bulawayo and Harare .Chapter 14 of the new constitution speaks to this providing for devolution of governmental powers and responsibilities to appropriate levels .Whilst some might not like the word devolution it is not really the semantics that matter but the level to which there is statutory provision of placement of power from one level of government to another .Ultimately it is about what this system of government achieves in terms of socio economic development not the composition or semantics .Broadly the constitution defines the objects of devolution of government powers to provincial and metropolitan councils and local authorities as : 1.Giving powers of local governance to the people and enhance their participation in the exercise of the powers o the state and in making decisions that affect them . 2.To promote democratic ,effective ,transparent ,accountable and coherent government . 3.To recognize the right of local communities to manage their own affairs and to further their development . 3.To ensure the equitable sharing of local and national resources 4.To transfer responsibilities and resources from the national government in order to establish a sound financial base for e ach provincial and metropolitan and local authority . Surely which Zimbabwean in her or his right frame of mind would be opposed to any of these objectives ?.No political party worth its salt can deny Zimbabweans at the local level the right to participate in decision making and development processes which enable them to be masters of their o their own destinies .Those who claim to champion empowerment but do not believe in empowering local communities are in ideological internal conflict and confusion . However whilst the objectives of devolving power to provincial ,metropolitan councils and local authorities is to all intents and purposes very sound it is the de tail which may be confusing ,contradictory or unclear . For the avoidance of doubt there are eight provincial councils and two metropolitan councils the metropolitan councils being that of Bulawayo and Harare Functions The functions of the provincial and metropolitan councils primarily are that of socio economic development of respective provinces ,co ordination of government programmes ,natural resource management ,promotion of tourism ,evaluation o use of resources and other functions in a yet to be framed Act of parliament .The structure and staff of this level of government are also left to an Act o parliament which Act of parliament is not yet in place . What may be confusing however is the fact that the metropolitan councils may encroach into the work of the Bulawayo or Harare local or municipal authority as they would primarily manage the same geographical space tough possibly the metropolis will be bigger .The metropolitan councils consist of all the elected councilors ,house assembly representatives ,Senators and is chaired by the mayor who is elected at the first sitting of the council .The constitution implies that the mayor cannot be executive unless he /she is directly elected by the electorate [Chapter 14.11] It must be noted that a lot of the functions of the metropolitan and provincial councils are left to an Act of parliament and are not clearly articulated in the constitution .The current Provincial Councils Act is not adequate for these purposes as it is not in harmony with the new constitutional order . Critically local government is also provided for in the new constitution but much is also left to an enabling Act of parliament .Both the Rural District Councils Act and the Urban Councils Act need to be urgently amended ,repealed or aligned to the new constitution so as to provide a sound framework for this new dispensation . These tiers of government have an adequate foundation in the new constitution but these are inadequate in the absence of a supporting superstructure in the form of enabling legislation .Once a clear legislative framework is in place Zimbabwe can work towards sustainable socio economic development predicated on sound local democracy ,good service delivery and local development

Consumer Activism

CITIZENAND CUSTOMER ARE KINGS –THE IMPERTIVE OF CONSUMER ACTIVISM By Dumisani Nkomo Away from the madness of Zimbabwean politics is an equally maddening phenomenon of the erosion of consumer rights ,the death of customer care and the virtual collapse of quality service delivery at all levels for Zimbabweans in all walks of life .Why should getting a passport be an achievement? and why should getting a drivers license be something of a miracle ? whilst getting a birth certificate or identity document be as difficult as going through the eye of a needle ?Many banks treat their customers like their slaves who owe them a living . Why has law enforcement by the police become the preserve of those who line the pockets of police officers .Only those with ZANU P.F caps and t shirts are able to get away from corrupt traffic police officers who have turned corruption into an institution .Why do pensioners get pittances whilst their funds have been used to build expensive shopping malls and other buildings whilst they continue to wallow in poverty after contributing to pension schemes for years only to be told that their savings were eroded with the disappearance of the Zimbabwean dollar .Why should bank tellers ,till operators and commuter omnibus operators treat us like they are doing us favors when their businesses would collapse without us their “valued consumers? .I would like to give a few personal glimpses of nasty experiences at the hands of service providers as well as broader challenges that citizen /consumers face at the hands of faceless and ruthless private and public institutions who have made rudeness a national occupation and corruption a way of life . The Police and The Criminal Justice System Almost a year ago I assisted a young lady[ actually a juvenile ] to report a case of rape and after physically reporting the case to a bunch of un co operative police officers at Queens Park Police Station ,I personally organized transport for the police officers ,the suspect and the victim .For the past eight months we have been shuttling from the police station to the courts and up to now the case has not even seen the light of day in the courts in spite of all the rhetoric about gender rights and the rights of children .The criminal justice system has virtually collapsed and both the law enforcement agencies and the courts appear to be unable or unwilling to deal with cases as the one I described above in spite off numerous attempts to push both the police and the courts to act .Is justice only for the rich or the corrupt? .The Zimbabwe Anti Corruption Commission needs to be brought in to investigate Corruption in the police force .Corruption in the Vehicle Inspection Department is well documented and legendary but has become a fact of life . Births and Passports One of the most traumatic things to have to go through is the process of either securing a new passport ,replacing a lost one or renewing an expired one .One is made to feel they are applying to go to heaven by some of the officers concerned .Even going to heaven takes one to accept Christ into their lives but getting a passport ,securing an identity document can be quite a nightmare in independent Zimbabwe . .Why does it have to be so complicated in this world of technology it should literally take a few minutes ? .The process is as cumbersome as lobola with the applicant being treated like someone who committed some gruesome crime against some ancestor or the other .This is worsened by rude officers with no idea that the customer is king . Just last year I was quite horrified when attending a villagers meeting in Mthunduluka ,Plumtree when a an official from ZESA Holdings decided to address shocked villagers in a language they did not understand without apologizing or showing any sign of remorse .There is absolutely nothing wrong with speaking in any of the national languages including Shona or Ndebele but surely for one to address a group of villagers in Mangwe in Shona or in Ndebele in Murewa is short of scandalous .Communication is essential in service delivery and the police and parastatals are especially notorious in showing little or no respect for local languages .How then does the provider of the service get feedback on his /her product when he/she does not understand the consumer of the service or goods? Pension and Depositors Funds Without funds from depositors and contributors banking institutions and statutory beneficiary social security institutions would virtually collapse .There should be equal diligence in accounting for funds of depositors ,contributors and tax payers as there is in soliciting or collecting these funds .I was impressed with pensioners from Brethren In crhist and Mennonite Churches in Canada who in 2010 lobbied the Canadian government to investigate the conduct of mining companies they had invested in .They argued that the mining companies based in Canada with operations in East and Southern Arica had contributed to the displacement of thousands of locals and environmental degradation .As conscious investors through pension funds they then lobbied the government through a Private Members Bill for a piece of legislation to compel mining companies to be socially responsible .Although not totally successful this was an example of shareholder activism .Imagine pensioners from the Railways or NSASSA beneficiaries publicly lobbying for the responsible use of their funds through responsible investments. I remember at the height of the Zim dollar madness many companies and N.G.O’s lost funds in banks that had been placed under curatorship with some banks converting the depositors funds in foreign currency accounts into equity without the consent of the depositors .Others lost their life savings and investments .Is this not some form of legalized theft of depositors funds by vampire state institutions ? . Solutions I would like to suggest that in order to curb the rampant abuse of consumers ,customers ,contributors ,depositors and so forth the following be done : Consumer Activism We need more organized consumer activism with consumers organizing themselves to withhold their money from service providers who mistreat them .In order for this to work it has to be properly organized and should not lead to anarchy .The Consumer Council of Zimbabwe which is statutory body need to be capacitated to handle the needs of consumers to challenge the excesses of state entities and corporates . Shareholder/Depositor Activism Depositors should not blindly deposit their money into banks and allow themselves to be abused by some banking institutions .Efforts should be made to organize depositors so that their funds are safe and those who abuse depositors and their funds should be subjected to organized ,non violent consumer resistance . State institutions should be schooled in tenets of the new constitution such as the Chapter On Public Administration and Leadership which outlines how public institutions and public officials should behave .Constitutional bodies such as the Zimbabwe Anti Corruption Commission should urgently investigate the culture of corruption in most if not all public institutions .Companies should send their employees for customer service training .This is not an expense but an investment which will increase their returns . The customer is King .

Indigenization

Indigenization –Distributing Poverty Or Wealth Distribution By Dumisani Nkomo I have no qualms about the broader intents and philosophy of black economic empowerment , however such a policy has the potential of actually creating new problems instead of solving old problems .Whilst indigenization and empowerment seeks to correct historic wrongs and involve the previously disadvantaged black majority it could actually result in the distribution of poverty instead of wealth .At times hunger forces people to kill the cow that gives them milk on a daily basis and for a whole week people may revel and feast on meat but in the long term they will run out of meat and pray for the return of the cow that gives the milk .In The same vein if the indigenization and empowerment programme is implemented callously and carelessly it will have genocidal effects on the economy resulting in increased poverty instead of broader economic growth ,employment creation and improved standards of living .I would like to argue that there is something fundamentally wrong with any economic or socio economic model that is predicated on transferring wealth without due emphasis on creation of wealth . Wealth Distribution Versus Wealth Creation The ZANU P.F Election manifesto states that a ZANU P.F would target 1,138 companies in 14 sectors for indigenization in the process unlocking value of U.S 7,3 million .I would like to argue that merely focusing on transferring wealth from one group to another would be suicidal for the economy in a number of respects .We have to grow our national cake before deciding to slice it up among ourselves especially at a time when the cake is shrinking in size and value .Do we not believe that we can make it as black people without grabbing from others ?.Strive Masiyiwa ,Nigel Chanakira ,Mthuli Ncube and Trevor Ncube are some of our very own Zimbabwean businesspersons who have proved that blacks can also successfully create wealth and run successful companies without having to grab from some white businessman somewhere .Sadly some of these great entrepreneurs have been declared unwanted in Zimbabwe when they should be living examples of how black Zimbabweans working together with Zimbabweans of various racial groups can make it on their own . There are just too many people who want to take over farms ,mines and companies without adding any value to the entity ,the economy and the nation .We need wealth creators that will create employment and opportunities for other Zimbabweans not wealth accumulators for whom owning a company is a status symbol not a vehicle for empowerment ,creating wealth and jobs . Patronage and Corruption Corruption ,cronyism and patronage networks are now embedded institutions in our national ethos and the indigenization and empowerment process is likely to deepen and accentuate these cancerous activities which have made the economy similar to the ruins on the ZANU P.F logo .There are valuable lessons from South Africa where the A.N.C National chairperson and struggle icon Baleka Mbethe is facing corruption allegations over a company that was targeted for Black ECONOMIC Empowerment [B.E.E.] .There are also cases of connected young South Africans who have never worked in their lives but are millionaires because of patronage networks which have produced a generation of “tendepreuners ‘ who win tenders without the capacity to deliver services or goods .I hope Minister Francis Nhema institutes an audit on who has benefitted from the current indigenization process lest we find it is a tiny “coterie or “criminal cabal “masquerading as champions of black economic empowerment secretly lining their pockets whilst everybody else wallows in grinding poverty . Milk and Apples George Orwell describes this aptly in his prophetic classic Animal arm were the pigs [ruling class ] set aside for themselves the milk and apples Propaganda chief Squealer tells the other animals “comrades we are eating those apples and drinking that milk for your own sake comrades ,imagine If we failed to eat those apples and to drink that milk Jones would come back “. The past ten years have seen a new class of rich young blacks many of whom neither “toil not spin ‘but whose only claim to wealth is patronage and links with the ruling elite .These are eating and drinking on behalf of the masses . Mass Economic Participation A Myth Whilst mass participation in the economy is noble it is largely mythical as not everybody can own or run a business .This is not racial but universal as the trend in advanced economies with high economic levels is that most people are happy working and earning a salary .This a simple act which has nothing to do with being black or white For most in Zimbabwe what we call businesses are actually survival strategies or coping mechanisms to survive in this harsh economic environment .Many of these people could be happily employed if the economic environment was conducive .Of course there are many people out there who can turn their small businesses into thriving enterprises but surely to expect an entire population to own and run businesses is simply delusional and is the highest form of self delusion and fantasy We now have generation of people who want to run ‘their own things “,their own N.G.Os ,their own bakeries ,their own companies which is absolutely fantastic but the problem is that we are not encouraging the culture of hard work ,productivity and innovation to along with this noble spirit .We cant have a whole nation of people “running their own things “,this is only possibly where an economy has collapsed and people are trying to survive as is in one case .We should not therefore build a whole ideology for whole economic policy based on survival and make this into a national policy . I am all for black empowerment , I am all for indigenization and black empowerment but it needs to be based on the right foundations .It should not be based on grabbing from the whites but building our own viable business enterprises .It should not be based on who you know and patronage networks but on quality of service ,quality of goods and affordability .The final product is not black of white but it should be of the right quality whether it was produced by a black man ,white man or pink man or woman .Indigenization should not become an excuse for poor workmanship ,poor customer care and poor delivery . What Should Be Done Hardworking entrepreneurs should be rewarded through access to credit facilities at reasonable interest ,tender opportunities ,capacity enhancement through skills enhancement and mentoring .Just dishing out thousands of dollars with just result in distribution of poverty instead of wealth . I was actually intrigued three weeks back when I visited a furniture company owned by a black family from Bulawayo .They did not grab it from a white man but their t product was excellent ,their service incredible and the delivery precise .These are the black entrepreneurs we should be empowering not some lap top ,brief case tendepreuners who survive on graft and patronage Mayibuye