Voices from Zimbabwe · Global Voices
Zimpundit

With the rainy season now underway in Zimbabwe, most of the nation's time and attention is given to pontificating and prognosticating what the agricultural prospects have in store for us.  Like many other agro-based economies, the measure of a good (or bad year) is based on the nation's agricultural production.  Just on cue, Zimbabwe's scandal prone government is neck deep in a sensational scandal involving the importation of flawed fertilizer from South Africa.
Apparently, Gideon Gono the central bank governor initiated the order, but has of late, shifted   blame for order on agriculture ministry officials.  Simon Pazvakavambwa, the secretary in the agriculture ministry, facing the axe over the scandal is now threatening to spill the beans on the scandal if he's let go of.  The bearded man comments on this latest wrinkle:
Here we have one of ZANU PF's own playing the party at their own game. Now to that, you have to be prepared to reap the consequences (forgive the pun).  In years gone by, when members of Mugabe's government got overly cocky and started running off at the mouth, they were ‘tragically’ killed in road accidents or found floating in swimming pools (there was another one found this last week!).
On another front, the government's threats to place CIO operatives inside the nation's popular internet cafes so they can ferret “unpatriotic” agents who are spreading malicious rumors about Zimbabwe came under further scrutiny this past week.  Kubatana blogs finds this excerpt from a letter in one of Zimbabwe's papers
The writer tells us two things:
- that freelance journalists wouldn’t actually be that daft to use a public space to publish their articles, instead they’d more likely use a friend’s computer and Internet connection
- its rumoured that online news sites like Zimonline actually receive their stories from state scribes who write their articles on state time and using the state’s resources like computers and connectivity
Of course there’s also the issue of goonpower – are there enough of them to trawl all the Internet Cafes of the country on the lookout for wanna be cyber-agitators? We think not.
Needless to say, this issue will be discussed for a long time.
Finally, just as we're ready to forget about it and push it to the back of our minds, the presidential succession issue is back on the horizons again.  This time, NewZimbabwe is reporting that John Nkomo ZANU-PF's national chairman has officially thrown his in name in the hat for consideration for the nation's top post.