The Zimbabwean Consulate in Johannesburg, South Africa, will be closed on Monday 20 March 2023 because of a planned national shutdown announced by the opposition EFF led by Julius Malema.
In a public notice dated 18 March 2023, Acting Consul General C. Murahwa said the consulate will reopen on Tuesday, 21 March 2023. Part of the notice reads:
<blockquote>
The Consulate wishes to inform members of the public that as a precaution, and in the interest of public safety, it will be closed on 20 March 2023.
The situation has been caused by circumstances beyond our control. We apologize for any inconvenience caused.
The Consulate will reopen for business on 21 March 2023, as per the working hours specified in its Public Notice on Extended Working Hours dated 9 March 2023.
Kindly be informed that all appointments, which were scheduled for the 20th of March 2023, have been cancelled.
All affected clients have been advised by email and were requested to rebook new appointments, at the earliest convenient date.
As usual, the booking platform will open for new bookings every Wednesday at 1600 hours.
</blockquote>
More: <a href="https://zero.pindula.co.zw/">Pindula News</a>

Pindula News

Zimbabwean Consulate In Joburg To Shut Down On National Shutdown Day

South African opposition party, EFF, is planning a national shutdown on 20 March 2023 to protest continuing load shedding and call for President Cyril Ramaphosa to resign.
EFF leader Julius Malema announced the planned protest late last month, saying the Zuma Must Fall protest will look like “Micky Mouse”. Said Malema:
<blockquote>
The national shutdown means that there will be no school, no university, factories and no business will be operating on that day.
All municipalities and all major cities will be shut down and there will be no work on that day. All major roads will be barricaded and all ports of entry, including roads that lead to borders, will be closed…
No business operations will be opened on that day and no truck, and no train will be allowed on the roads and railways, particularly the trucks transporting South Africa’s minerals and coal outside South Africa through Richards Bay.
</blockquote>
“Zuma Must Fall” was a march by thousands of South Africans in 2015 calling for then-President Jacob Zuma to resign after he fired two finance ministers in one week which led the rand to tumble to record lows.
Meanwhile, Malema said streets would only remain open for emergency and essential services during the national shutdown.
The EFF said it will also be protesting against the rising cost of living, unemployment and poverty, increasing crime levels, corruption and collapsing infrastructure.
On 20 March, the EFF national leadership plans to march to the Union Buildings to hand over their demands.
EFF said it will reveal the next step on the day if Ramaphosa does not resign.
More: <a href="https://zero.pindula.co.zw/">Pindula News</a>

EFF Plans To Shutdown South Africa On 20 March

Tajamuka/Sesjikile Campaign has issued a press statement calling for a national shutdown starting tomorrow. They have also threatened to oust President Mnangwagwa if he does not abolish the 2 cents per every dollar tax by mobilising citizens on the 17th of November 2018.
We publish the full press statement below:
<blockquote>Fellow Zimbabweans!
Tomorrow, we are falling or rising together.
As Tajamuka, we have called for a national shutdown for reasons that we have already stated nationally and publicly.
We want to state categorically clear that this is not about Tajamuka or about ZANU PF or about the MDC or about individuals. This is about the government, governance and the economy. We deserve respect from our government. And its time that we acted in a manner that will show the government that we deserve the respect.
Tomorrow, we are succeeding. We are succeeding because this is not a political but an economic struggle. It is a cry of the citizens, for the citizens and by their citizens.
We are saying, we don’t care who governs us, but we care how we are governed. So far so bad! Those governing us have and continue to take us for granted. If this was acceptable in the past, it will not be acceptable from tomorrow going forward.
Surely, how can people borrow farm implements from the RBZ and transfer their own debt to the citizens, how can we deposit USDs to banks, ecocash, investments, pensions, savings and the government just wakes up and change all that to the useless bond notes and expect everything to be business as usual.
So tomorrow we are taking a stand, a stand for history and for posterity. We are saying never again, will we, as a country, as a people and as a generation allow a clique of few people to squander our country and its resources the way we have witnessed over the last decades.
For so long we have watched you abuse our resources, our civil servants, our vendors, our students, our elderly, our youths, our farmers and farm workers, our rural folks, our urbanites, our women and even our children. Tomorrow, whether we succeed or not, we are drawing the line in the sand, and beginning a new and historic chapter in our country.
The government must and will be accountable and responsive to the needs and sensibilities of the people as from tomorrow going forward. If Mnangwagwa does not abolish the illegal and fraudulent tax, we are going to mobilise the citizens to oust him on the 17th of November 2018, the very day he and the military ousted Mugabe last year.
Fellow Zimbabweans, you can underestimate tomorrow`s struggle and events at your own peril. We are determined to give this country another chance, and to stand with the poor, the vendors, civil servants, students and even business who today are sidelined in favour of foreigners.
This country belongs to all who live in it and all are entitled to equal opportunity and respect. We all bow down to one national flag and we all carry one vote. Nobody, and we mean nobody is more equal than the other. We are all equally entitled to the resources of this country, because we are all Zimbabweans. Nobody is more Zimbabwean than the other.
So tomorrow let us show them. It doesn’t matter which political party, tribe or church you come from, we are all under the bus and we must pull together to free ourselves from the senseless and needless weight.
What are we demanding by the way?
<ol>
<li>We are demanding, first and foremost respect and our dignity as citizens</li>
<li>Abolition of the illegal unfair and unjust taxes</li>
<li>Economic stability and predictability.</li>
<li>An end to fatal use of live ammunition against citizens and protection of the shooters</li>
<li>Justice to the shooters.</li>
<li>Jobs and employment for the youth.</li>
<li>An end of the harassment of vendors.</li>
<li>Our USDs in our accounts.</li>
<li>Abolition of the bond note .</li>
<li>Security of employment for civil servants.</li>
<li>Salaries USDs.</li>
<li>Economic freedom in our lifetime.</li>
</ol>
Tajamuka/Sesjikile Campaign 
People`s Revolutionary Council</blockquote>

Full Text: Tajamuka/Sesjikile Calls For National Shutdown

Addressing journalists on Tuesday ahead of President Robert Mugabe’s meeting in Sakubva Stadium, Mutare on June 16, Zanu-PF Manicaland provincial youth chairperson, Mubuso Chinguno threatened to take up arms to crush Tajamuka/Sesjikile Campaign’s shutdown which is expected to take place from June 20 to 25.
Said Chinguno:
<blockquote>We are ready for them (Tajamuka/Sesijikile). If it means taking up arms of war to defend a constitutionally-elected government led by President Robert Mugabe, we are going to crush them. In Manicaland, we don’t want that nonsense. We are warning civil servants. For teachers, we have many graduates, if you fail to go to work we are going to replace you. As for nurses, it’s the same. No shop will close and we are going to protect you. Manicaland is a no-go area. We are even ready to take up arms of war if that happens. We will deal with them ruthlessly. We will not wait for the police.</blockquote>
More: <a href="https://www.newsday.co.zw/2017/06/08/zanu-pf-youths-threaten-take-arms/">NewsDay</a>

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