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SENATE HANSARD 20 MAY 2025 Vol. 34 No. 49
PARLIAMENT OF ZIMBABWE
Tuesday, 20th May, 2025
The Senate met at Half-past Two o’clock p.m.
PRAYERS
(THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE in the Chair)
ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE
INVITATION TO A HALF-DAY SYMPOSIUM OF THE 57TH SADC PARLIAMENTARY FORUM
THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: Parliament of Zimbabwe will host the 57th SADC Parliamentary Forum, commonly known as SADC PF Plenary Assembly from the 31st of May to the 7th of June, 2025, at the Elephant Hills Hotel in Victoria Falls and as part of the preparatory process, Parliament will convene a mini-symposium under the theme of the plenary assembly. The theme is as follows, Harnessing artificial intelligence and innovation in enhancing Parliamentary processes in the SADC region, opportunities and challenges. Consequently, all Senators are invited to attend the mini-symposium to be held on Thursday 22nd May, at 0800 hours in the Multi-Purpose Hall
SWITCHING OFF OF CELLPHONES
THE HON. DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: I would like to remind the Senators once again to put your gadgets on silent or better still to switch them off so that you do not disturb the business of the House.
MOTION
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
THE MINISTER FOR PROVINCIAL AFFAIRS AND DEVOLUTION FOR HARARE PROVINCE (HON. SEN. TAVENGWA): Mr. President, I move that Orders of the Day, Numbers 1 to 5 on today’s Order Paper, be stood over until the rest of the Orders have been disposed of.
Motion put and agreed to.
MOTION
CONDOLENCES ON THE DEATH OF FORMER DEPUTY PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE HON. CHEN CHENHAMO CHAKEZHA CHIMUTENGWENDE
Sixth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the sudden death of the former Deputy President of the Senate, Hon. Chen Chenhamo Chakezha Chimutengwende.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. TONGOGARA: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. MOHADI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 21st May, 2025.
MOTION
CONGRATULARY MESSAGE TO HON. KIRSTY COVENTRY ON APPOINTMENT TO IOC PRESIDENCY
Sevent Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the congratulatory message to the former Hon. Minister Kirsty Coventry on her election to the International Olympic Committee OIC Presidency in Greece.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. CHAKABUDA: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. GWATURE: I second, Mr. President.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 21st May, 2025
MOTION
REPORT OF THE THEMATIC COMMITTEE ON CULTURE AND HERITAGE ON THE TRADITIONAL COURT SYSTEMS IN ZIMBABWE
Eighth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the report of the Thematic Committee on Culture and Heritage on the traditional court system in Zimbabwe.
Question again proposed.
*HON. SEN. TONGOGARA: Thank you Mr. President for the opportunity to add my voice to the report of the traditional courts which was brought in this Senate. If we are to look back on how things used to be in traditional courts, chiefs were there and crimes were committed but the chiefs were able to resolve them amicably. In the past, we did not have a lot of problems such as early marriages or teenage pregnancies but these are now our daily problems. When our country was colonised, they tried to find a loophole because people were united and respected their culture. The whites pretended to be good people, yet they were busy researching our ways of living and they discovered that the people were united and the power was invested in traditional chiefs. The formation of district commissioners who were presiding over the issues that were happening in their areas caused our chiefs to lose their power, thereby losing our cultural value as a country.
In 2013 when the Constitution was amended, it was discovered that as Zimbabweans, we have lost our values and was suggested that chiefs should be given their powers that they used to have before colonisation. We are grateful for that and thank the Government that chiefs were given back their powers. We all know that if something happens and for it to return to its original place, it takes time. It is taking time for our chiefs to enforce their power, hence people are yet to know that chiefs have retained their power..
The Committee travelled in different areas and noted that people were happy about the fact that chiefs are the ones presiding over issues in their areas. People were happy to hear that chiefs do now have the power to preside over their issues because they are easily accessible, with no need for transport since they reside in the same area. Traditional courts are friendly, there are no such issues that when you report your case you have to wait for days before the case is heard, there are no backlogs of cases and the monies that are supposed to be paid are little and affordable than those demanded in these modern courts. Very few people afford lawyers in our modern courts and cases take time to be finalised, yet in traditional courts there are no such things.
The Zimbabwean populace was happy about the traditional courts because they really protect our culture. This is something which is very important because our culture is being eroded every day and there is need to make sure that we come up with ways to protect our culture. When we were growing up, every person who is older than you was your parent. Nowadays, if you look at the way we are raising our children, if you reprimand someone's child, you as an elder, will be reprimanded. That is how our culture has been eroded.
I want to say our traditional leaders are very important to us. I am pleading with you that the Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs continue to work hand in glove with their traditional leaders. If there are new laws that must be followed by the traditional leaders, they must notify them so that they can work together and desist from avoiding the cases resolved by a traditional leader where people would appeal to these modern courts and rule out the judgment of our traditional chiefs. This way of handling issues is disrupting our justice system. Chiefs must be given their deserving powers. If they preside over a case, they must preside up to the end of the case, unless the chief sees it fit that the issue is difficult and needs to be referred to the higher court, the modern court. This will help in protecting our culture and the positions of our chiefs. If we say they have presided over an issue and they give a ruling, tomorrow that ruling is disregarded, it means that we are showing disrespect to our chiefs and we are not according to them the respect they deserve. These chiefs are very important in our lives. We know that a community without a chief is like a household without a parent. There is a lot of insubordination, disputes and a lot of problems which are happening. I am pleading with this Senate that we take into consideration this pertinent report and all the recommendations brought by the Committee. The Minister of Local Government who is responsible for the chiefs must also look into the issue and work together with the Minister of Justice. The chiefs must be given their respect and powers which they used to have. We know that there were cultural norms that we used to follow when visiting the chief’s homestead. May we continue to do that? This will help us as Zimbabweans to develop our culture and protect our heritage.
Right now, our First Lady, Dr. Auxilia Mnangagwa travels to different areas doing the Gota-nhanga Programme in a bid to try and mold our children. Even us as Hon. Members let us encourage our constituencies to respect our cultures and our chiefs. If we do this our country will go back to its original state and even some of the problems which we are facing today will end. Thank you.
*HON. SEN. HUNGWE: I rise to add a few words to this motion. I also want to thank our Chairperson, Hon. Senator Chief Nechombo for bringing this pertinent motion in this august House. Zimbabwe is known for its culture, peaceful nature, protection of the cultural values and norms is being achieved through the respect of the chiefs. Right now, we are happy that chiefs are being ordained in different areas. We want to thank our Government because it really shows that they respect and know that there is a need to appoint chiefs.
For the country to be peaceful, there is a need for chiefs. A lot of things have already been said by my fellow Hon. Members. My issue is on courts. Courts are there to uphold justice when someone has committed a crime. In the past, when someone commits murder, he was given a penalty of death but that law was abolished. The chiefs are there to act as a mediator – for example when a person is killed there are rituals and money paid to appease the dead to avoid the avenging spirit from destroying families.
So, I am saying in this Senate, may we look into that issue and encourage our provinces to respect our chiefs. Most of the people are no longer respecting chiefs, especially the young ones. They do not know who the chiefs are. In this Senate we have a quota system for chiefs. In the past, if the chief does not come to perform the cultural rites for a particular place notifying the village that there is going to be a construction, the place cannot be habitable. So, we must protect and respect our chiefs. His Excellency, the President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, Dr. E. D. Mnangagwa encourages all of us as Zimbabweans to respect our chiefs. He speaks highly on the issue of ubuntu.
Where I come from there is a chief. In the past, most women were not allowed to preside in the village courts meeting. I am pleading with this Senate, that these traditional chiefs must include women. We also have our own minds as human beings. We can give very constructive ideas like the issue of rape; it is difficult for men to sit down with a girl child and give them advices. Girls feel comfortable receiving advice from their mothers. So, we are requesting you to look into that issue so that we come up with a solution. In Matabeleland and Mashonaland, we are happy that there are female chiefs.
We used to have Mbuya Nehanda and even Charwei who fought the liberation struggle whilst she was a female. We also had our girl child who went to the liberation struggle to fight for the freedom of our country. Hence we are pleading with the village courts, may they look into the issue of inclusion of women in those other minor roles, even in the major roles, so that we can include women to be part of this cause. We are also encouraging the chiefs to take mature people. May we desist from taking the young ones?
Right now, we are grappling with the issue of drug abuse. It is because the chiefs are far away, they are not given their power and their position to preside over the issues happening in their areas. May we put these chiefs in their respective areas? Some of the issues are of avenging spirit which are not being appeased. When the issue has been presided over in the modern courts and completed it must be resolved culturally.
I am someone who is used to say a few words because some of the issues had already been mentioned. May our chiefs be respected? The chiefs must know that they are now living in an era where people have embraced foreign values. When the chiefs are presiding over the issues, they normally give penalties of goats or chicken. If you can clearly examine these issues, you can see that these fines are very small. If it is an issue of someone who is dead and there is an avenging spirit, they take the family of the perpetrator and the family of the victim, sit them down and come up with a fine. You would see that after the resolution, no problems would arise - everything will move smoothly and hence I am saying to our chiefs, Zimbabwe is a very beautiful country and it has managed to achieve a lot.
We also have chiefs in this House who are going to sit with their fellow chiefs in their different areas who have got different cultures. If we go to Tsholotsho, they have their culture which is different from Njanja, from Masvingo and any other area. So, we are saying the cultural norms of those areas must be respected so that we can live in peace and harmony. I am proud of the fact that Zimbabwe is a peaceful country. There are some who try to stir conflicts in the country but the ancestors and the chiefs of this country do not want war. I thank you Mr. President.
*HON. SEN. MUNZVERENGWI: Thank you Mr. President, for giving me the opportunity to debate on the motion brought by Hon. Senator Chief Nechombo. I would like to add on top of what has been debated by other Hon. Members about the importance of the leadership of chiefs.
The issue starts at village head level. They are the ones who are responsible for looking after the communities, kraal heads as well as village heads, all report to the chief. I was considering what was happening in the past, our culture and how life was taking into consideration the differences in cultures and the rules and norms in each and every area. Due to the advent of the Land Reform Programme those areas were no longer under chiefs. Right now, if you go to resettlement areas, they are village chairmen, now they are kraal heads. The request is to the Ministry of Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs as well as the Ministry of Local Government is that is it not proper for them to now acknowledge the jurisdictions of chiefs? For example, Chief Mangwende or Chief Chitanga, should know their boundaries before the resettlement programme.
These resettlement areas have brought together people from different cultures who do not know the rules or the traditions of the local clan. They may claim that they do not know the rules to follow in that area. So, these two Ministries should ensure that the chiefs continue the jurisdiction that they had so that the headman will know the right chief to report to.
Furthermore, some of the village heads were not from that area, they may not be good at respecting the cultures, rules and norms of that area. If only the norms and practises could be documented, then a headman may know what the chief requires and they are able to know their hierarchy. Headmen in most areas are now selling land and there is nothing documented on what rules they are supposed to follow.
It is my wish Mr. President, to ensure that these three categories merge and harmonise so that documentation may clearly show how they operate. We cannot run away or reject culture. We noticed some companies that want to engage in mining. Before they bring up machinery, they visit the chiefs first and report to the chief and ask the chief what they require. Then they are given the amount of money that is required as well as livestock. They speak to their ancestral spirits who then open up the minerals. That testifies that indeed there is something important for us as a nation. We need to keep on respecting those traditions because some may want to try and explore resources without visiting them. They may not be able to get them until the chief speaks to the ancestral spirits.
Mr. President, chiefs want to be assisted with written documents so that for us citizens, we may also respect those norms and traditions. We would like to thank His Excellency, Dr. E.D. Mnangagwa who is resuscitating some of the traditional leaders that were suppressed but are now being revived. Some of them may fall under the jurisdiction of the resettlement areas that I earlier referred to. We see that they are now being restored. We are now going to see female traditional leaders.
If there is a female child in line for chieftainship or traditional leadership, may they be installed? We also wish that on your panel as chiefs, please include female assessors so that women can feel free to come with appeals as they can freely talk to their female colleagues. The chief may come up with a fair and just judgement that takes into consideration everything under the circumstances. I thank you.
^^HON. SEN. MOHADI: Thank you for giving me the opportunity to debate. I would also like to thank Hon. Senator Chief Nechombo for bringing this motion into this House. Allow me to also thank His Excellency, the President, Dr. Mnangagwa for his mantra which talks of leaving no one and no place behind. I would also want to appreciate the great work that was done in 2013 through the constitution of the country, which allowed chiefs to be given back their powers.
I would now want to say a few words about female chiefs. Where I come from in Matebeleland, we are grateful because we now have female chiefs. What we are asking on their behalf is that even though they are young, let us have one or two of them being Senators. Right now, we have no female chiefs in the Senate. Before I look further into this, I know this is going to be rectified in due time and it will make us see female chiefs in this House. The other thing that I am pleading for on behalf of the female chiefs is to be given enough respect because they are just like their male counterparts. The other issue that I am requesting is that all our chiefs do not have traditional halls to operate from as they do their court procedures. Therefore, our Government should look into this issue and ensure that they have traditional places where they can hold their traditional courts. These should be respectable places or halls and this is critical.
Allow me Mr. President to thank the First Lady for the great work she is doing, teaching people about our cultural practices in all provinces. Let us also help her to ensure that her task is carried out successfully. Mr. President, our children, especially those born in the 2000s and those coming after them no longer respect their chiefs. They do not care about them and take them for granted. Hon. Members, we have a task to ensure that we take those children back to our cultural practices. This is why we continue to applaud the First Lady for the great work that she is doing. All we need to do is assist her. This report is vital and it has indicated a lot regarding cultural issues. I will not dwell on what has been dealt with by other Members but keep saying women chiefs should be part of this House. If we are talking about traditional tasks, they are handled differently according to different areas and according to what people from these different areas do. To some people, it is taboo to have female chiefs or leaders but let us ensure that we have a few who will be part of this august House, working with them in here. With these few words, I want to thank you Hon. President.
HON. SEN. CHIEF NECHOMBO: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. ZVIDZAI: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday 21st May, 2025.
MOTION
CONSTRUCTION OF DAMS AND WATER STORAGE FACILITIES
Ninth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on climate change mitigation.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MUZENDA: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. GOTORA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 21st May, 2025.
MOTION
LEGALISATION OF TERMINATION OF PREGNANCY
Tenth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on access to safe legal abortion services.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. MUZENDA: I move that the debate do now adjourn.
HON. SEN. GOTORA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 21st May, 2025.
MOTION
REPORT OF THE THEMATIC COMMITTEE ON CLIMATE CHANGE ON THE ENQUIRY INTO THE IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON HUMAN-WILDLIFE CONFLICT
Eleventh Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the Report of the Thematic Committee on Climate Change on the enquiry into the impact of Climate Change on Human-Wildlife Conflict.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. TSOMONDO: Thank you Mr. President for allowing me to rise and support the motion which was moved by Hon. Senator Mupfumira concerning a matter in trying to address the rise of human-wildlife conflict in Zimbabwe. This is a phenomenon that has significantly intensified by the impacts of climate change. The conflict is not theoretical, it is real and it is affecting thousands of Zimbabweans especially in bordering districts near national parks where wildlife increases strays into community lands causing destruction, injuries and sometimes death.
The environmental and climate conditions within our national parks are shifting. Water points are drying, forage is declining and migrant routes are changing. Our wildlife, particularly elephants and predators are being pushed beyond protected areas in desperate search for food and water into human sentiments and in return our people are suffering. They are losing their crops, livestock and in some cases their lives.
Mr. President, I appeal to the Minister of Environment and Climate to urgently integrate Human-Wildlife Conflict into the National Climate Change Adoption Plan. This is not simply a conservation matter but is a climate induced socio-economic threat. I propose that human-wildlife conflict be formally recognised as a climate vulnerability under the climate change policies with resources allocated for mitigation interventions in high-risk districts.
The Communal Areas Management Programme for Indigenous Resources (CAMPFIRE Programme), is originally a visionary model of community-based natural resources and management must be restructured. It should be expanded to support ecotourism, conservation agriculture and climate-smart agriculture. The Rural District Council should ensure transparent benefits sharing with communities bearing the burden of wild presence. ZIMPARKS and local traditional leaders working together to strengthen a Community Conservation Trust.
Madam President, the people in these communities are struggling to recover from the losses caused by wildlife. Therefore, we must go beyond traditional fencing and reacting response. Let us adopt climate smart and nature-based innovative technologies. For example, the deployment of GPS tracking collars and early warning systems for elephants and predators in high-risk communities.
Wildlife does not obey man-made boundaries and its migratory routes are dictated by nature. I appeal that the Ministry of Lands and the Ministry of Environment and Climate should legally gazette critical wildlife conservancy corridors. They should continue to work with local leadership and communities to protect these areas through zoned communal land use plans.
Madam President, I call for the establishment of a Human-Wildlife Task Force which may be chaired by the Ministry of Environment and Climate. This task force should consist of ZIMPARKS, Rural District Councils and civil society groups, Parliament representatives and local leadership representatives. The task force must report annually to this House detailing programmes and recommending legislative reforms as necessary. Therefore, let us act not only in the interest of conversation but in the interest of justice, dignity and development for our people. Let us build a Zimbabwe where wildlife thrives not in conflict with people but in harmony with them. I thank you, Madam President.
HON. SEN. PHULU: Sorry, point of order, maybe to assist. This is Order 11 that we are debating.
THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF SENATE (HON. SEN. A. DUBE): Yes.
HON. SEN. PHULU: I realise that it is on day 21. So, if the mover does not wind it up, it will lapse. So, I just wanted to be of assistance in that regard, to ask before it adjourns, she winds it up.
THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: I think the Chief Whip is the one who is supposed to know everything. I do not know how to do that. The Chief Whip is not in. So, we will wait for her to wind up. This is a Committee report, it requires a resolution of the Senate so, the Chief Whip can adjourn the debate. Thank you very much Hon. Advocate.
HON. SEN. MUZENDA: Madam President, I move that the debate be now adjourned.
HON. SEN. GOTORA: I second.
Motion put and agreed to.
Debate to resume: Wednesday, 21st May, 2025.
MOTION
OVERHAUL OF DILAPIDATED STADIA
Twelfth Order Read: Adjourned debate on motion on the deplorable sports infrastructure in the country.
Question again proposed.
HON. SEN. TSHABANGU: Thank you Madam President. If you could allow me, if there is no debate, I wish to round up my motion. If the House pleases...
THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF SENATE (HON. A. DUBE): Order Hon. Sen! I can see the Clerk is checking. Hon. Sen., you can wind up your motion. The Minister had responded to your motion. You can wind it up.
HON. SEN. TSHABANGU: Thank you so much once again, Madam President. I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to my fellow Senators who have put flesh into the motion that was skeletal when it was brought in this House 19 days ago, in terms of the calendar of Parliament. I am so humbled and grateful that they debated and researched, that I could really feel and see the sense of ownership, the sense of belonging in the debate. They took it as a motion of national interest, a motion that cuts across our political affiliations, our geographical locations because sports know no boundary. Sports unify the nation. I must allude to say, we have seen how the beginning of the season, if I want to centre on football, the introduction of Scotland in our league, how it has ignited that enthusiasm, that excitement, that flame that used to be there before.
We used to fill up these stadia when Highlanders, Dynamos, Capes United, these big teams fill up the stadia when they are playing. Lately, because sport is so essential in the drive of the economy, we can now see the stadia packing up once again. This is good for the sport, this is good for the country and I am glad that the Minister of Sports, whom I highly regard, whom I have met before he was sworn in, on two occasions, I saw a man who is authoritative. I have no doubt at the back of my mind that his Ministry, which was present during this debate, will take and tap the great richness of contributions in order to build our sport and build our stadia.
I have no doubt that the Minister has the capacity, intellect and he has this authoritative charisma in him. Without further ado, I am so grateful that this Senate has contributed and this Senate is going to continue taking care of all these motions in order to contribute in our legal way, in our legal manner to build this country that we love so much. With those few words, I move that the motion be adopted.
Motion that:
DISTURBED by the deplorable sports infrastructure in the
country;
CONCERNED that despite our concerted efforts to revive our
stadia to meet international standards, the country still lags behind and no international matches can be hosted at all;
NOTING with dismay that the status quo has resulted in our
national teams playing their home matches in other countries resulting in heavy revenue losses thus compromising sports development and national pride;
NOW THEREFORE, implores the Ministry of Sports, Recreation,
Arts and Culture to:
- conduct a complete overhaul of our dilapidated stadia and to
refurbish those currently in need of this exercise.
- engage the Confederation of African Football to rescind their
decision which has seen our football teams playing their home matches in other countries.
- review and reform the National Sports Policy, put and agreed to.
MOTION
RECAPITALISATION OF PUBLIC HEALTHCARE INSTITUTIONS
Thirteenth Order read: Adjourned debate on motion on the state of the healthcare system in the country.
Question again proposed.
*HON. TONGOGARA: Thank you Madam President: I rise to add a few words to the motion tabled by Hon. S. Moyo, which is in conjunction with public health services within our system hospitals. I am well aware that with the Old Dispensation, things were not well in the hospitals. I also want to further state that the New Dispensation already found out that there were these challenges and rectified them, which is a good thing. Now patients are constantly being treated by doctors. The Minister of Health is someone with a military background, he was being looked down upon, he made frantic efforts to talk to the doctors, the nurses and all the caregivers in the hospitals to ensure that the people receive medication or treatment in this hospital. This actually worked. We saw that things were going back to normal, slowly but surely. From that time, until now, we have not heard of any challenges pertaining to the hospital workers going on strike. It is something that we should be proud of.
My observation is that our President has a vision. When he interrogates issues, he gets to the bottom of these things and ensures that there is a solution. So, he observes that for things to move properly, there is need for harmony among the workers in the medical field, which was the first step before we got to the issue of the unavailability of drugs, [technical fault during interpretation.] We used to know that no one would just come and say that I was ill at Parirenyatwa. Parirenyatwa was a referral hospital. They would start from the clinic and then once they were done with the clinic, they would go to the major hospital and they would be treated.
This was no longer in use because there was nothing at the clinic. The money that people were paying was not put to good use. Hence, you then observe that referral hospitals were for those who were seriously ill and required specialist treatment. People who suffered from minor ailments such as headaches would find their way to the clinics. I want to thank our Government very much. Yes, things are still hard, but you observe that when steps are being taken to address such issues, then another problem befalls us. We had the misfortune of COVID-19 and a lot of money was used to buy injections to boost our immunity.
Hence, you find us still alive. Others were even coming from outside the country and they were receiving their COVID injections from this country. We thank them for all that because the vision of President, Cde E. D. Mnangagwa shows wisdom, a clear vision. It shows that he is focused on ensuring that people stay alive. There was talk of sanctions and that Zimbabwe as a country under sanctions, people were going to die like flies, but nothing ever happened like that. Nothing because our President has a good vision. Still on that, we had the cholera outbreak. Cholera is a fatal disease. It kills people within a short time. A lot of money was used to ensure that those who were suffering with cholera may be treated.
We know that cholera is caused by lack of water and dirt. The money that was budgeted for medication was then used to buy drugs for cholera and also look at the causes of cholera. We were told by the late Oliver Mtukudzi to get to the root cause. We should not treat the symptoms, but we should also look at the issues that were causing this because people were not accessing clean water. It takes a lot of money to drill boreholes. Those that were supposed to provide clean water failed to discharge their mandate. If you had to open a tap where you pay water for every month, you never received, once in a while when you get the water, it will be dirty and rusty.
People then suffer from cholera and money is expended on cholera. When you go to the clinics, there would be no panadol’s because the money would have been diverted to the treatment of cholera victims because those who were supposed to treat them would have failed. President Mnangagwa's Government does not behave in such a manner, it is focused. It does not want its population to die. It does not want its population to suffer. It does not want the councils that have failed to provide services to the people to be just ignored. They intervene because they know that these are the people of Zimbabwe. He is the President of the country, he is in charge of the country and he runs the whole show.
Furthermore, I want to say that the Minister of Finance in this year's budget gave us 13% of the National Budget. It fell short by 2% to be in line with the Abuja Declaration. This shows that we are slowly but surely improving because if our Minister of Health has been given money, it helps in the procurement of drugs. They will be able to be procured and people can be treated. I further observed that the Abuja Declaration did not get as far as that. There was also taxation on sugar which was going to be used for the purchase of drugs, it is being paid. I urge that the money be ring-fenced so that it is solely reserved for the sugar tax. Once ring-fenced we know that it is set aside for that specific purpose. Once it is ring-fenced, the Minister of Health ensures that he receives the amounts and also purchases the drugs and other requirements that the doctors need to treat people in hospitals. We are lucky.
Madam President, I was just saying that the taxes being levied on sugar be used for acquiring medicines. It would help us to have medicines in our hospitals and clinics. Our well-educated doctors and nurses who perform very well may be seen not to be very efficient because they do not have adequate equipment to perform their duties. It is my request to the Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion that once there is a levy that has been set aside for a specific sector or element, be used for that exact element.
We are all here because we are all healthy. If one is not well you hear of them having been taken to the hospital. The hospital is supposed to have drugs to cure those who fall ill. In the majority of cases, we observe that they are unable to pay money. They were unable to pay for the services at the pharmacies where they all had gone. I also plead, Madam President, that an investigation be carried out by the Government wherever the Government is able to buy medicine.
We have doctors who have their private surgeries. The drugs are being misused. They are being taken to the surgeries of these doctors. There will be no drugs in the pharmacy at the hospital, then they refer patients for the same drug in their private practice. We need that to be sorted out. We also need it to be investigated so that what will have been purchased for patients that are eligible for that fund be used in that manner and not a situation whereby people fail to get medication because medication is being sold to clients.
Madam President I would like to thank Hon. Moyo for bringing this motion. They should open their eyes and see where they are going wrong. Once these things have been put in the right direction, our health system will grow from strength to strength. I thank you for affording me this opportunity, Madam President.
*HON. SEN. MDHLURI: Thank you, Madam President, for affording me this opportunity to debate on the motion brought by Hon. Senator Moyo, which talks about the state of affairs in hospitals.
Let me start by saying for things to go well, once we receive medication and equipment we should look into the state of affairs and then start from there by assessing the situation, if it can be remedied and how best we can carry it out. Given an example, it is important for people to first concede that things are not well. Then, from there we should be in a position to see how best we can resolve this bad state of affairs which we have accepted.
Things are not well. Things are not rosy in our hospitals. I will give an example. I would want to thank the Minister who went to Parirenyatwa and observed that the equipment was not functioning. He was not feeling well. When he got there, he was shocked to see that things were not well and he even requested His Excellency the President to go to the hospitals and see the state of affairs in the hospitals. It shows that the Minister appreciated that things were not right. The issue of the hospitals, does not matter what political affiliation or background you have. We need to just use the naked eye or see our vision in the future. What will be our future if things remain in this state? Therefore, for us to resolve the issues of hospitals, we need all Hon. Members of this august House to put our heads together.
This is a senior chamber, so when we have spoken, everyone should listen. We must have constructive criticism. Constructive criticism will help us build our country. We are all here in this country because we love it. Some people have left the country but we have remained in this country because we love it.
Let me take you back, Madam President. In 1977 or 1978 my maternal grandmother hit a landmine with an ox-drawn scotch cart. She had limbs that were severed. There is a referral hospital called St. Peters where she was taken to in that condition. She was assisted, she was treated. Despite the injuries that she had received, she was further referred to Mpilo Hospital where she was treated and she got well. Despite the fact that she had lost her legs and had injuries she was treated and she responded to the treatment. I am saying so because at that time, our hospitals had adequate equipment and drugs and would attend to anyone who fell ill.
I feel hurt or pained because my grandmother died a few years ago because of cholera. Cholera requires just a drip as medication. Once the drip has been administered, one will live but she died because she failed to get the drip at such a big hospital, that is the current state in our hospitals. We are all here to put our heads together so that we can speak with one voice. Previously when our leaders fell ill, they were treated outside the country, especially China and would recover. This then shows us we do not just abide by what is in the country because we know that things are in a bad state. China is our all-weather friend. Yes, they are mining minerals and destroying the mountains. They are doing well with the leadership. Knowing that there is medication in China that can treat us, why are we failing to talk to our Chinese friends to bring medication so that they are able to treat people in Zimbabwe? This will then help those who are unable to travel to China for treatment.
It is sad for one to know that if you are to go to a certain hospital, it is in a sorry state. There is evidence to those that read in the newspapers, we observed two days ago that there was a karate player who passed away after being involved in a road traffic accident. When the news circled in social media, the friend became very angry. What hurts me most is that there are people who wrote that if you are suffering from a stroke and go to a certain hospital, you will not come back. I thought that people were misdirected as this was on social media. I was touched the following day to find out that the person had died. Can we then say that we have good hospitals? We know that what we have is not sufficient and my plea is that we should put our heads together in this Senate so that we build the issue of the health services.
We are here today feeling healthy but when we fall ill, we need to use the same hospitals. We must truthfully interrogate the current state of our hospitals. Hospitals should not be a place where one goes to die. There was a certain Hon. Member who left the building crying after losing a certain Member who was on herbs. It shows that there is no medication in our hospitals to treat us such that people have resorted to the use of herbs.
Madam President, if it was possible, we would want our health personnel to be remunerated properly and be fully equipped with the materials to use in these hospitals. It is difficult for a teacher to write on the board without a chalk. Even in this Senate, if these microphones were to be switched off, this Senate would not want to continue doing the work. People who are in hospitals are suffering. I urge our Government to continue looking after people so that they have adequate materials to use. Last week we went to a hospital with a patient and we were asked to buy some drugs. After we brought the medicines and when the doctor was to administer the drugs, we were told that we should buy a syringe. We bought the medication and we bought the syringe. This hospital is in the rural areas near the Mozambican border.
Things are not looking good in our hospitals, even the doctors that are within those hospitals also require assistance for them to get adequate resources so that they can discharge their duties. I thank you for giving me this opportunity and I thank the mover of such an important motion.
HON. ZVIDZAI: Thank you Madam President for the opportunity to add my voice to the motion by Hon. Senator Moyo. Before I do that, to preface my contribution, I would like to bring the attention of you Madam President, to the keen interest that your House has around issues of health. If I remember well, the number of motions that have been pushed by this Senate around issues of health is very high. We have spoken about diabetes, motion on hydrocephalus disease, kidney disease, so your Senate is very keen to get your support, to make sure that these contributions that we make here around issues of health are heard and heard resoundingly by the powers that should get things to move.
Madam President, it is very impressive that across the aisle we all agree that a healthy nation is more productive, lives in better harmony, is happier and it grows its economy because there is capacity to participate and do things, work the fields, work the industries, the mines, et cetera. That can only be done by a nation that is generally healthy. Our health depends very much on the infrastructure that we have for health delivery. If I were to repeat the request by Hon. Minister Machakaire, that please kindly let us visit the provincial hospitals, Parirenyatwa, Chinhoyi and Beit Bridge to see for ourselves. Our Thematic Committee on SDGs could lead that process. Let us go throughout the country and visit the provincial hospitals so that we can create a map in our minds of the state of dilapidation of our health institutions in this country. I am not even talking about the software, the issues of syringes, medicines and those soft issues.
Let us talk about those things that when you walk into Harare Hospital, what impression do you create? As for me, with my own experience, the state of dilapidation is so alarming, yet the beauty of a nation can only be judged by its capacity to deal with people when they are in difficult situations. When you fall ill that is when you need help the most, in line with the concept, our own philosophy of solidarity. With the weak, we move and try to assist but with the infrastructure that we have got, it is very difficult for me not to support this motion.
The prayer of the mover of the motion emphasises very much on the need to make sure that NATPHARM avail the required medicines in the dark ends of the country in Dotito, Tsholotsho, Bikita and Matusadona. Out there, where the majority of the poor live, if you walk into a rural health centre today, there is nothing there to speak to as a health centre. This is what the mover of the motion prays for, that effort be made to enable NATPHARM to deliver medicines to those areas out there, the peripheries of the country in Chikwalakwala, Chilonga and all out there.
The state of the situation there is alarming and appalling. It needs us to make sure that we all join forces to ensure that we can get a little bit of relief for the poor out there. As I conclude, I have got my personal experience. I visited Rwanda on a look-and-learn exercise. I went to a district called Muhanga which is near the DRC border. I was very impressed with what I saw there. Riding the charioteer of a country called Rwanda whose only source of income is tourism as driven by the existence of gorillas, compared with Zimbabwe, awash with everything. At Muhanga District, they have a system of delivering medicines to the remote rural health centres. We have got a drone system and I am not lying.
Out there, they have got a system of small drones with central stores for general medicines that are generally required. Painkillers, cotton wool, in case a woman needs it after giving birth, cal –guard, in case you have BP, medicines for diabetes and the general medicines that you need, the basic ones.
They have got 75 small drones that are making sorties, flying all over. Out there the clinic says, here we need two boxes of paracetamol and off the drone goes. In 10 minutes, the drone gets to the destination, as long as it is within 80 kilometres. In the next 10 minutes, it is back to take another journey. Rwanda is doing it for all its rural districts. Where the 160 kilometres ends, another setup takes over.
Madam President, it is not a theory of relativity. It is not space knowledge. It can be done here because it is being done by Rwanda, of all places. Now, if you can imagine how NATPHARM could send required medicines to Nembudziya, the road is inaccessible. The hospital and the clinics do not have vehicles to carry those medicines there. So, the truth is that our health system is not performing as it should.
Therefore, with these submissions, I wish to fully support this motion so that the prayer that we have got from the mover that the Minister of Health pays strong attention on the need for recapitalisation of our health institutions should be taken very seriously. Secondly, rural health centres be able to receive deliveries of required medicines so that we have affordable and available medicines for the poor. I wish to thank you for the opportunity you have given me to ventilate these few issues. At the same time, thank Hon. Moyo for thinking through a fair motion so that the people of Zimbabwe out there can get some relief. I thank you.
HON. SEN. TSHABANGU: Before Senator Moyo closes his valuable motion that cuts across everyone, allow me to put my voice to the previous speaker who has spoken eloquently about the status of our healthcare institutions that this country faces. Health matters are non-negotiable. Surely, it is sad that we still talk about health issues in this day and age, debates about these are enshrined in our Constitution.
Fundamentally, it is the responsibility of every nation to ensure that its citizenry gets and obtains medical care. In other developed countries, Madam President, I am not trying to bring election but in other countries and other nations, if you do not have an adequate health policy, you cannot stand before the people and seek that people should vote for you. Those are benchmarks for every party that seeks to contest and represent people. Coming back to our situation, in 2017, there was a statutory instrument that levied mobile data use. Maybe you do not know Hon. Senators here, but you can research.
The Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion has to account, Madam President. 5% is taxed everytime we use our airtime, there is 5% that goes to the health levy. It was designed in 2017 in such a manner that it will annually, contribute US$80 million that should be channelled to the hospitals to improve our infrastructure, and our healthcare facilities. To date, how many years down the line from 2017, the population has grown, the mobile users have increased, the way we use airtime, we always spend more on airtime.
Madam President, today you go into a combi, everyone is on the phone. Data is being used. We buy airtime like we buy maybe a cigaratte, more than we buy a cigar, more than we buy a bottle of beer. Where is this money going to? - [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] - We need to ask hard questions. The President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, said the opposition should really ask these hard questions. Riding from that, because I am given that authority, the mandate to expose the injustices that are happening within the Government, and the fact that I am in the opposition in this august House because nobody can substitute or remove himself from health issues.
One day, Hon. Senator, during the Question-and-Answer sessions, we used this medical facility, PSMAS. It does not work, Madam President. I contribute every month, but if I go to any hospital, they do not accept PSMAS, even private hospitals for that matter. Why do we, as the legislators of this august House, fail to hold these ministries accountable? They are put in these positions to discharge their constitutional mandates and to ensure that we enjoy this peace that we are having but you cannot enjoy peace when you cannot afford to take the same body that is carrying you to the hospital. I cannot go to the state of the hospital - it has been really, put to this House of Assembly.
I remember this other day when I went to Mpilo Hospital in Bulawayo. You see how passionate and how hardworking our nurses, our doctors are under difficult circumstances – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] - They will tell you, Madam President, that one of the most difficult things that we are still failing to comprehend every day, when I wake up and go to the hospital, is to see us losing lives that we could have really saved – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.] - They are saying they are failing to comprehend, watching someone die in a hospital, not that his time has come, but because we are unable to save. We do not have the tools.
They went to school to train, to save lives, but we are failing to empower them with the essential tools that they can use and impart the skills that they have so that they can save that innocent life. Any soul lost, is so essential. There is no more important person or soul than any other. We are all equal. Surely, to live in Zimbabwe, should not be dedicated for the rich. It is only those who have money who will be able to fly out of Zimbabwe and go to South Africa to seek medical attention.
The people whom we represent, for example down in Dotito there, do not have that capacity, they do not have the luxury to go and seek medical attention from other countries. You look down in South Africa, there is a video which circulated sometime for a pregnant woman who went to seek medical attention from a hospital - because the South Africans, believe that we are using their tax money in South Africa to get free medical aid, she was confronted by three, four women, a pregnant woman for that matter to say how did you get here, where are you coming from? Why are you here? What was the diagnosis? What form of medication were you given? It is so painful and to date, I do not think that woman, glaring the media, heavily pregnant, survived that - these are just examples, Madam President.
The situation out there where we do not have access is so deplorable. I would like to applaud my colleague who brought this very important and valuable motion and I wish that, we could hold the Minister of Finance, Economic Development and Investment Promotion and the Minister of Health and Child Care to account. Particularly, Madam President, the 5% levy, they need to tell us where the 5% going. Our Mpilo and Parirenyatwa were the regional hospitals and these are our heritage. I was born in Mpilo and I was proud that I was born in Ward C9. However, today somebody has taken away that pride which I used to have. I cannot associate myself with Mpilo Hospital nor can I associate myself with Parirenyatwa Hospital. This is where our masses seek their medical attention from. I therefore urge us all to form an enquiry and this House has the obligation as a Parliament to form an enquiry and we go into these hospitals. We have the mandate in terms of the Standing Rules and Orders. These Ministers are not doing their job and they are not doing any favour to the Head of State. We cannot be reduced to this level. We cannot watch and see our people die every day. For how long are we going to stop it? For how long are we going to do the mitigative measures Madam President? I thank you.
HON. SEN. C. MUTSVANGWA: Thank you Madam President. In the same vein, I want to applaud the Senator who moved this debate before us. I want to share a lot of the sentiments that have been expressed concerning the sorry state of our hospitals. We really have to do something about it as a Government but also at national and local level as well as in many other instances. The reason why our health sector deteriorated cannot be divorced from the economic circumstances of this country because to fund health you need a vibrant economy, which is part of the international eco-system.
It is common cause here that as of 2002, we have had sanctions which brought our economy to its knees. It also entailed deprivation of access to the most modern equipment which would have been in our hospitals. These sanctions were intentionally imposed upon us by traditional major Western powers which have been the grain of our international trade for some time. However, there was also cheerleading of these sanctions by the same quarters who are now finding the pain of a broken health system. Sometimes one is advised not to lift a big stone and drop it at your own feet. This is where we are today because we were abetting the destruction of our economy because we wanted short-term political gains of access to the State House through the back door. This is the problem that got us to where we are today. Now the consequences are there.
In America, they have a new President and the geo-political will has turned full circle. America, which was ardently canvassed to impose sanctions on Zimbabwe has turned around and is no longer interested in those sanctions. Where are those Zimbabweans who were advocating for sanctions when America is abandoning that position? Where are you? Haikona kunotsvaga n’anga inobata mai uroyi. This is what has happened in this instance.
What I want to add is that if we can all pool our energies together, we can restore the health system of Zimbabwe. The finger-pointing which is being done here in this House shows woeful ignorance about how the system of Government works in this country. There are hospitals which are the responsibility of the Central Government but the biggest employer normally, is in urban areas in a concentrated manner. It is a fact that for the past two decades, urban areas have been run by the opposition in Zimbabwe. They have as much responsibility to provide medical services as Central Government as anybody else. If you finger point only at the Minister of Health, where are your mayors and councillors? These are the people that provide local healthcare at that level. These people who are lamenting the state of our affairs today, if they have any integrity, would own up to say they have been responsible for the local governance of this country for two decades in urban areas and they have not shown by example why they should deserve to attack the Central Government about the sorry state of our health affairs. Local governments run hospitals all over the world.
More importantly, there seems to be an attitude from the same quarters that towns are dormitories for people to come and live. Towns are not dormitories but they are places where there are factories, where people produce goods and services which are sold on the global market. When it comes to investments, an investor does not come to State House but goes to the local authority, which is the mayor. He is the one who receives the investors. That is why towns all over the world have got identities. London for finance, New York for finance, Tokyo for cars and Berlin for that. Every town strives to have an identity in terms of its contribution to the production of goods and services destined for the local, regional and global market. Our mayors who belong to the opposition for the last two decades have not done anything to attract investment in towns. So, if you cannot attract investments in towns, how do you expect to have resources?
HON. SEN. MANYENGAVANA: On a point of order Madam President. We are debating on national health and not on local authorities. If the Hon. Member wants to debate on the local authorities, he has the right to put a motion…
THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: Hon. Senator, I understand what you are saying. Others were debating about Ministers that they are doing nothing. Can you please listen to what he is saying? Everything which is said here is important to all of us. We were listening to everyone who debated today. So, everyone is important and whatever is said is important too. So, let him proceed with his debate.
HON. SEN. C. MUTSVANGWA: Thank you for protecting me Madam President. I want to emphasise the point that urban areas were run for the past two decades by institutions, which under the current Zimbabwean Constitution have shared responsibility with the Central Government for the provision of health. So, when we talk about the Minister…
*HON. SEN. ZVIDZAI: On a point of order Madam President, I think it is important for this august House to debate truth. Madam President, in this country there is no single local authority that runs a central hospital. - [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.]- So, we need to help each other here so that we do not fend off the truth with lies.
THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF SENATE (HON. A. DUBE): It is ok Hon. Senator, I understand your point of order. Hon. Senator Mutsvangwa, can you proceed?
HON. SEN. C. MUTSVANGWA: I do not know why people are not aware that there are hospitals like Wilkins which are run by the Zimbabwean municipalities. These are hospitals which should have been supported by a vibrant urban population which is productive…
An Hon. Member having stood up.
THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: Hon. Senator, I am not allowing you now for your point of order. Can you leave him to finish his debate? No, I will not allow that point of order. Can you leave him to finish his debate?
Another Hon. Member having stood up for a point of order.
I will not listen to your point of order. We have been listening to you. Everyone spoke whatever he thought about. - [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections]-. Let us listen to the point of order from one of the Senators.
HON. SEN. CHAPFUDZA: Thank you Madam President for giving me this opportunity. As for the point of order Madam President, it is not according to your choice but it is according to the rules. If the rules allow a Member of Parliament when he raises...
THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: Can you put your point of order?
HON. SEN. CHAPFUDZA: Yes, the point of order is that when our Member raises the point of order, you should recognise it because it is written in the rules. We are saying you should recognise.
THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: I will not allow that. I have heard your point of order, it is okay and point taken.
Can you stand up Hon. Senator Mutsvangwa and proceed? - [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.]-Proceed.
HON. SEN. C. MUTSVANGWA: My most profuse...
THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: Are we playing here? Hon. Senators, are we playing or what are we doing? Are we playing games? He has spoken his point of order. – [HON. MEMBERS: Inaudible interjections.]- Do not disturb him. That is what I do not want. I will not allow the disturbance of other colleagues. Listen here Hon. Senators. Everybody debated the way he wanted to debate. No do not just disturb each other. Now you are trying to disturb each other to put his contributions. I will not allow that. Let us all put our input here. No one is special here. Can you stand up Hon. Senator Mutsvangwa and continue to debate?
HON. SEN. C. MUTSVANGWA: My most profuse thanks Madam President. I emphasise the point that health for this nation is a shared responsibility of governments at all levels. So, whilst I accept that the ministers of Government at Central Government level should be taken to task. I also advocate that the mayors who have been responsible for running these towns for two decades must be taken to task. Not only should they have maintained the existing stock of hospitals, but they should have built more hospitals if they had any knowledge about how you run a town and how you make urban people who work in factories and industries get health care.
It is the responsibility at the primary level of the mayors and the councillors who were running urban centres. So, the buck does not just stop at Central Government level. It stops at the Local Government level. I am appealing against finger pointing and am appealing for collective responsibility, shared responsibility so that we both deliver a health service that the Zimbabweans deserve. That is all I wanted to say Madam President. – [HON. MEMBERS: Hear, hear.]-
HON. SEN. PHULU: Thank you very much Madam President for allowing me to debate this important motion which is soon going to be wound up by the Hon. Senator Solani Moyo who raised it. We certainly would like to thank him for raising such an important debate. Our nation has said that it is leaving no one behind. This is our official mantra. Certainly, our nation in its policies has singled out health along with education and other social services as critical to ensuring that this nation goes forward and serves its people.
As we talk about service delivery, health is at the pinnacle of this issue. Our current motion is framed specifically calling upon the Ministry of Health and Child Care, that is to say the Minister of Health and Child Care to urgently consider the recapitalisation of public health care institutions under his mandate. So, the motion is framed quite precisely.
I remember Hon. Senator Gotora debating sometime back when he gave us a lesson, a lecture in local governance and how it works. Outlining to us the 43, he knows how many powers that local authorities have. So, Madam President, today it is the turn for us to focus on Central Government. What is its role in ensuring a stellar health service situation in the country? As we charge towards 2026 Madam President, we need to have firm plans in place. We need to select one or two areas where we are going to execute to ensure that our local delivery of healthcare improves.
This is in the face of many situations that have arisen in our neighbouring countries, South Africa and other places, where we are being chased away because we seem to be hogging the services of their hospitals and putting pressure, unnecessary pressure on them. I think it is time that we have an adequate answer to the motion, where we do not run away from the questions before us. What is being done to ensure that these hospitals are recapitalised? I have been to Mpilo Hospital and I must say I saw some improvements here and there. It really does not look and smell like a hospital, like the national hospital that it is. However, more needs to be done. The heating system for ensuring that there is water for the hospital's various services and for the patients’ needs to be overhauled. The issue to do with beds, simple beds - I went to Bulawayo Central Hospital and found that there are no beds. In fact, we are not even able to repair because these are steel beds, which presumably, if you got a welder to come and weld, you could fix a lot of them.
I know that there are private players who try to provide these
things but holistically speaking, we need to have an agenda. To simply put an agenda that is clear, crisp, and serious, to say this is how much we are going to put down to ensure that we overhaul the infrastructure. It is the only answer that we can have. I am not asking for the Minister to build new hospitals. Yes, we do need new ones in certain areas but the ones that exist surely would do with a revamp, including basic issues such as painting.
I move to the issue of the doctors themselves; the medical personnel. That also is something that as an economy, as a country, we all need to contribute towards and find solutions. No hiding behind any fingers. This is not the topic where we can do that. This is the topic where we need to find answers. I move to the issue of drugs, which is the most critical one, outlined specifically in this motion. The question has been asked, we need perhaps a clear accounting of what happens to those levies that are being contributed, because it already means that the citizens of Zimbabwe are making their contributions. We need to find a way in which we place or allocate these amounts in order to take care of some of these critical issues.
We know that globally, NGOs, for example, who were supplying different amenities at a certain level are pulling out for whatever their political reasons are. The supply of condoms has been raised as one of the critical issues. The supply of drugs for people living with HIV and AIDS, for instance, as all these challenges accost us, what is our response as Zimbabwe? As part of the so-called Third World or the developing countries, what is our response to drugs? When are we going to take charge and be able to say that we want to counter the international players and be able to make our own drugs? These are the things that this question is asking. The question, as mentioned by my Hon. Senator Mutsvangwa, of sanctions, but I propose that it is a question for another day. It might be relevant in certain places. I would like to say to him that it is a question that everybody here recognises is present and should be addressed. Perhaps myself and him should do a joint motion on that one. I invite him and he will be surprised at our views.
THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF SENATE (HON. A. DUBE): Hon. Advocate, you are not supposed to confront other colleagues.
HON. SEN. PHULU: I said him, I did not say you.
THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT OF SENATE: Yes, even though it is him, yes, of course but you are not supposed to go - [HON. SEN. PHULU: It is an invitation, it is not a confrontation. I apologise for that.] - Okay, you can proceed.
HON. SEN. PHULU: Certainly, are you saying we are not supposed to debate freely?
THE TEMPORARY PRESIDENT: You cannot confront other colleagues because he will debate it as well.
HON. SEN. PHULU: Madam President, I am commending his point of view and I am extending that I am willing to do a joint motion with him on the issue of sanctions. He will be shocked that our views are more nuanced and more progressive than he thinks. However, certainly on the question of health, we would like again to reiterate and underline what the Hon. Senator has said. I must agree with him that it is time for us to close ranks, hold hands and deal with the issue. Climb the steep slopes and ensure that we find a solution. It is a difficult solution but certainly we were sent here to Parliament to find these solutions. All we are calling for is that the Minister of Health should work with us, come and address us and help us to find these solutions and we can give our input as well. I thank you.
+HON. SEN. S. MOYO: Thank you Madam President for the
opportunity to wind up my motion. Quite a lot of touching issues were brought into this august House, such that everyone in this House is agreeable to this motion, that the state of affairs in our hospitals is in a deplorable situation. Almost everyone debated, despite the political differences. Till today, it is the same. Although some have different views because all of us cannot agree to the same issue. This shows that in an agreement you get one or two people who are going against other people's views. I do not know how God can intervene in our country to ensure that we work towards the upliftment of our hospitals. To those who debated on this motion, may God bless them. Even those who did not debate because they were away, I know they had commitments elsewhere. I move that the motion be adopted.
Motion that:
WHEREAS the right to health care is provided for in the Constitution, hence the need to prioritise its provision;
CONCERNED that the current state of health service provision is
deplorable considering the lack of basic amenities which are paramount for health care service delivery.
DISTURBED that the prevailing economic conditions only serve to exacerbate the situation making it impossible for citizens to seek medical treatment elsewhere other than in state run health care facilities.
NOW THEREFORE this House calls upon the Ministry of Health
and Child Care to:
- urgently consider the recapitalisation of public health care
institutions so that they fulfill their mandate.
- ensure that basic medicines are readily available through the National Pharmaceutical Company at all the country’s hospitals and clinics, especially in the remote areas where it may be impossible to get private pharmacies, be adopted in peace and I also ask the Minister to come and rectify, put and agreed to.
On the motion of HON. SEN. GOTORA, seconded by HON. SEN. CHAPFUDZA, the House adjourned at Two Minutes to Five O’clock p.m.