The passing
of Babs Naim on Christmas Eve marked the end of an era, as she was the only
person living to have been present for the launch of The Repertory Players in
1931, the opening of the Reps Theatre in 1960 and both the 50th
anniversary of the theatre in 2010 and the 80th anniversary of the
society in 2011. A Theatre Foundation Member, she was the embodiment of service
to others, not only through her connections with Reps and WVS, but through her
many other community-minded activities over many decades. A moving eulogy given
by her daughter, Linda, at the funeral on Sunday told of her life and her
commitment to others and underlined just how much this wonderful woman gave to
the people she served in her various capacities. The funeral was attended by
the Reps Chairman and Vice Chairman, as well as a number of other Reps members
and the Chairman was privileged to be asked to be a pallbearer. No words can
truly establish just what a remarkable person Babs was. As a member of Reps she
had a major impact on the society and its activities. That – and her presence
in recent years sitting quietly just in front of the stage left usher seats in
her wheelchair, listening (for she had lost her sight) to performances – will
be hugely missed but will always be remembered and valued. We shall not see her
like again.
Monday, December 31, 2012
Ignore roadblocks set up by only two cops
Ignore
roadblocks set up by only two cops
on
December 29, 2012 at 6:50 pm
Motorists
should ignore roadblocks manned by less than three police officers
as they
are illegal, a top cop has said.
Responding
to questions from stakeholders in Bulawayo, the national Deputy
Officer
Commanding Traffic, Assistant Commissioner Kenny Mthombeni, said
officers
bent on corruption set up illegal roadblocks.
“When
you see two officers at check points or a police officer trying to
enforce traffic
regulations in a private vehicle, disobey their instructions
and
report them to their commanding officer,” said Asst Comm Mthombeni.
He said
corruption was rife in both the public and private sector, adding
that
only a collective effort by stakeholders could put an end to it.
Asst
Comm Mthombeni urged members of the public to supply police with
details
of commuter omnibuses that allegedly flouted traffic regulations
because
they were owned by police officers.
“We have
heard of such vehicles. We have heard that they use undesignated
pick up
points and some are without the necessary documents. Send
information
to us about them and I assure you the Commissioner General
Augustine
Chihuri will take measures and you will see the officers on the
street,”
he said to applause from the stakeholders.
Asst
Comm Mthombeni said police fines only went up to $20 and if any officer
asked
for more, it would be extortion.
“Our
fines are between $5 and $20. Anything above that would be done to
induce
bribery. If anyone is caught doing that, we will need to refund the
motorist
and the money will come from the officer’s salary,” he said.
The
national Deputy Officer Commanding Traffic said it was wrong for police
to
continue issuing a ticket for the same offence at different roadblocks on
a single
trip.
“If you
are ticketed the first time, at the next roadblock, you should be
stopped
and taken to court. It is also police policy that when a vehicle is
stopped
at a roadblock, officers inspect the vehicle and not the driver.
There is
therefore no need for the driver to leave the vehicle and approach
the
police. If this happens, corruption may be taking place,” said Asst Comm
Mthombeni.
He
instructed the Bulawayo traffic department to remove all unregistered
vehicles
from the road, as they were taking business away from registered
operators.
Asst
Comm Mthombeni said police and the public should be guided by Exodus 23
Verse 8,
which reads; “And you shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the
clear-sighted
and subverts the cause of those who are in the right,”
Speaking
at the same event, the deputy manager of the Vehicle Inspection
Depot
(VID) in Bulawayo, Mr Exevier Dzimba, said about 75 percent of the
buses
that have been impounded by his department in the city since 15
December,
were driven by unlicensed drivers and most of them had no brakes.
He said
the statistics showed the level of corruption at the VID and police
roadblocks.
“To show that Zimbabwe is really dirty, after impounding the
vehicles,
people from high up, including politicians start calling and
asking
us to release the vehicles,” said Mr Dzimba.
Speaking
after the event, Mr Dzimba said the VID always requested written
instructions
from anyone making such a request and the people would back
down.
The Bulawayo City Council’s head of traffic and security, Retired
Colonel
Tobias Dube, said one out of three vehicles in the city had
outstanding
traffic tickets.
He said
the city practiced zero tolerance towards corruption and had stopped
officers
from accepting fines that were not paid at the Revenue Hall.
The
regional Traffic Safety Manager for the Southern Region, Miss Barbara
Mpofu
said employers should ensure that their drivers had all the required
documents
and their vehicles were fit for the road to avoid the need to pay
bribes.
Other
stakeholders, who attended the event included members of the public,
public
transport associations, the Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe and
senior
police officers in the province. The Chronicle
Warning
My
daughter, who is visiting from the States, had her handbag stolen last night at
about 6pm from Grasmere Lane, Borrowdale. It appears that a silver merc
came down the lane with changeable number plates, 2 youths climbed over the
wall, went into a bedroom where they grabbed the handbag and were then
disturbed by the dogs. We were all in the house.
It is a
cream/beige coloured leather handbag. 2 main zip compartments with small
outside pockets. In the small, back zipper pocket is an ID with her photo
and name on it – Shelley Maasdorp. Other contents included a US Android
phone, apartment keys, medical eye drops, small blue iPod, large headphones,
“The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner” book and a blue travel pouch with
an important US Government Work Visa document. If anyone happens to find
it flung over a wall or into a ditch we would very much appreciate them calling
us on 0772-241-197. verval@iwayafrica.co.zw
Monday, December 17, 2012
Festive Season Security
Festive
Season Security
The year
has passed by in a flash and a blur, and in the rush to plan holidays and a
good social we normally forget about basic security precautions .There is
usually see an upturn in crime over the next month and here are a few basic
tips to help keep you safe this Christmas season.
-
Advise
us if you are going away/closing down, and ensure that you supply us with
details of your key holders to contact in emergency, and who is staying on the
property.
-
Ask
your neighbours to keep an eye on your home if you do not have a guard, and
give them our 24 hour numbers.
-
Ask
your neighbour or a friend to collect your post.
-
Make
sure your alarm system is working properly.
-
Make sure you have good battery back up to prevent the alarm dying
in a power cut. (If you alarm activates when ZESA goes off and on this is
a sign of a POOR battery )
-
If
you have a house sitter make sure they know how to use the alarm properly.
-
Lock
up early if you are at home and activate the alarm.
-
Keep
gates closed and locked .Deny entry unless you are sure of identity and purpose
of visit
-
Make
use of alarm systems during the day if you are going out and double check that
you have locked up securely before leaving home
-
Remove
valuables from sight if you can ( laptops, phones decoders etc)
-
Never
leave keys on the inside of glass doors
-
Make
sure your external lights are working, preferably on a timer
-
Do
not leave tools like shovels and ladders outside- they can be used to gain
entry or as weapons!
-
Avoid
holding large sums of cash either at home or when travelling.
-
Park
in well lit and preferably guarded areas. Do not leave valuables on display.
-
Test
your Cell Phone Panic and make sure you are registered before you go away. You
can then call for assistance anywhere in the country with cell coverage.
We have
staff on call in each centre, and a duty Director, 24 hours a day. If you run
into difficulty, or just need advice please call. If you feel we are NOT giving
you the service you need please do not hesitate to call me on the number below.
Finally travel
safely, and have a peaceful and happy Christmas and New Year.
Thank you
for using Safeguard
Sincerely,
Andrew
Mallon
0772 422
679
Warning
ATTEMPTED THEFT
At approximately 16:00 hrs (4 p.m.) yesterday afternoon, Tuesday 11th
December, I was working just outside my gate. I was standing on my
stepladder, cutting a Bougainvillea creeper away from the electric fence wires
on top of the wall. My gate was half open.
A large vehicle of the ‘people-carrier’ type, metallic silver-grey in colour,
which appeared to be a Nissan El Grande but which I subsequently found to have
a name something like ‘Basara’ (some of the letters were missing or obscure) on
the back door, came past slowly with only driver and passenger on board in the
front seats as far as I could see. Both these men looked up at me as they
drove past. I noticed that the body moulding at the bottom left rear
corner was damaged, with a piece broken out, but unfortunately did not get the
registration number; but I would recognise it easily if I saw it again.
Shortly afterwards they returned and stopped at the entrance to my
driveway. The driver, well-dressed and well-spoken, got out and addressed
me, saying “Seeing you there, I wondered if you could let us have some water as
this vehicle keeps overheating?” I said yes I could do that, and told
them to park just outside my gate and wait there. I then walked up to the
house to fetch a small (4 litre) container of water which I took to their
car. When they opened the bonnet I was puzzled to note that the engine
was not excessively hot and no steam was coming from the radiator.
The passenger kept re-starting the engine until I told him to switch it off and
leave it alone. The driver chatted politely for a few minutes, then put a
cloth over the radiator filler cap and removed this; the radiator was full to
the brim and certainly nowhere near boiling! I now became very suspicious
and realised that they were up to something. However, they thanked me and
drove away.
When I returned to the house I found the back door locked and could not get in,
so called to my wife to open it, and asked her why it was locked. She
told me that she had been sitting quietly in the lounge when she suddenly
noticed, with astonishment, in the adjacent dining room, an arm, clearly not
that of a family member, reach out and pick up a small zip-bag of mine which I
had left on the dining room table. She stood up and addressed this
individual, telling him that he would not find anything of value in the
bag. He was extremely startled but quickly said that he was looking for
pen & paper; my wife then thought that perhaps I had sent him in; she noted
that he was well dressed and well-spoken, and was wearing a shiny pair of
pointed shoes, so she asked him where he had got these, to which he replied that
he had been in London. He then left without taking anything, at which
point my wife shut and locked the back door through which he must have entered.
The extraordinary thing to me is how this third person, no doubt an accomplice
of the two in the car, had managed to sneak in and out of my property without
ever being seen by me, no doubt while I was being distracted by the two at the
car. Our concern is that this may have been a reconnaissance trip against
a possible future ‘visit’, but I am well armed at home and also have a highly
efficient wireless alarm system which has already foiled at least 7 attempted
burglaries and thefts from cars in the past. The lesson to be learned is
that it is not even safe to assist people who are ostensibly genuine and
respectable.
Signed . . . B
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