So, for months now my colleagues have been forced to listen to my complaints about the latest Road Traffic Regulations and the requirements that we must keep things like reflective vests, safety triangles and Standards Association of Zimbabwe (SAZ) fire extinguishers in our cars, starting Friday 1 July.

I won’t go into the many, many reasons why I think this whole thing is a load of bollox again, but I am concerned that this fire extinguisher I am now forced to carry won’t actually do much of anyone a heap of good.

First off, it’s about the size of my forearm. Useful, I suppose, if my kettle spontaneously combusted. But my engine? I drive a small car, but even my micra-march I think could produce a bit more flame than this could handle. And, actually, my fire extinguisher is a full 250g larger than it even is required to be.

Even more worryingly, do I even know how to use the darn thing? Fortunately, it comes with instructions! Unfortunately, they’re also not very confidence inspiring.

Find below, a direct transcription with “sic” written all over it (that is, all errors are the errors of the manufacturer):

1. Shake the cylinder more times. Pull safety pin

2. Aim nozzle at the base of fire.

3. Squeezee Handle . Sweep side to side

Other points to note:

-    Every refilled or 5 year later the extinguisher could be reused only by the condition of passing 2.5 Mpa hydrostatic test every two years .
-    Check up this fire extinguisher and pressure gauge once a week it must be refilled once is discharge or if the pointer gauge is out of the green area.

Yeah. I look at the condition of half the cars in Harare, but with my SAZ approved fire extinguisher to hand I feel better all ready.

Support the family fun walk/run/ride to save the rhino

Date: Saturday 23rd July 2011
Time: Registration 8.30 – Start 9.30am
Venue: Mukuvisi Woodlands
Prizes: For First 5 People Home
Theme Colour:  Green and Brown
Price: $5 per adult/$2 per child

Please bring a picnic or braai and feel free to stay afterwards. There will also be food and drinks on sale.

All money made will go towards saving the rhino. Organized by:  Stephanie Bagshaw, Brittany Selby & Hannah Roberts from Chisipite Junior School

So let me get this right. POTRAZ doesn’t want to let Econet enable Blackberry services for their subscribers. And the Sunday Mail is intimating that this could be because Blackberry is too secure?

Read more

Yo!

Please take a moment to help us improve the Kubatana web site by participating in a real quick survey.

Click here and fill out our online form.

We guarantee you’ll sleep better tonight if you do . . .

Peace!

Kubatana

After getting to adjourn until July, the Senate’s been called back to work. So much for wanting to be a Senator.

From Veritas:

The House of Assembly and the Senate will meet this afternoon (31 May 2011) Although both Houses had adjourned to later dates – 14th June for the House of Assembly and 5th July for the Senate – they have been recalled early by the Speaker and the President of the Senate in terms of Standing Orders which permit the presiding officers, at the request of the State President, to order a recall if they are satisfied that the public interest so requires.

“What happened in Egypt is sending shock waves to all dictators around the world. No weapon but unity of purpose. Worth emulating hey.”

- Vikas Mavhudzi’s post on Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s Facebook wall. Mavhudzi is facing charges of posting offensive messages (Source: Mail & Guardian)