…As water woes mount in Gweru

Tinaani Nyabereka

Gweru- Residents in the Midlands province capital have called upon council to consider a reduction in the water charges following the on-going water crisis which continues to haunt the city.
Resident group Gweru Residents and Ratepayers Association (GRRA) have since written a letter titled ‘WATER CRISIS IN GWERU’ addressed to Gweru Mayor Hamutendi Kombayi on March 29, 2023 urging the local authority to consider slashing the bills.
“The water crisis is causing widespread discontent among residents of Gweru since most residents fear the spread of water borne diseases (cholera and typhoid) whilst, women and children are forced to walk miles to the nearest water sources for clean water.
“Moreover, with the increase in crime rate in the city, it poses too much risk for women and children to be fetching water early in the morning or late at night.
“As GRRA, we request: That every household in the city of Gweru be provided a 50% deduction on water charges for the month of March this year. What measures has your office put in place to ensure that residents access clean water?” read part of the letter.
Gweru City Council Public Relations Officer Vimbai Chingwaramusee said council was facing serious power cuts at Gwenhoro water treatment plant and Range booster.
“We are currently experiencing prolonged power cuts at Gwenhoro and Range booster and this is affecting our pumping capacity.
“Normally we require about 6-7 hours for us to pump enough water to high areas. As of now, low areas are the ones getting water because of the shortened time we are getting electricity. Efforts are being made to get around the problem as we have engaged the power utility and we hope things will improve,” said Chigwaramusee.
Gweru City Council has gone for close to a month with erratic water supply due continuous power cuts bedevilling the country.
Meanwhile government, local authorities in Midlands, ZESA and Civic Society Organisation recently converged at the Midlands State University to proffer solutions on the on-going water challenges.
The engagement was meant to look for other alternatives to provide power for local authorities to pump water to the community.
The acute water shortages come at a time the country is sitting on a ticking Cholera health bomb with several cases having been reported in various provinces while government has reiterated their preparedness to contain the looming epidemic.

Cephas Shava

MWENEZI-A group of 11 self-styled traditional healers led by one Sinibiyo Kakono (50), who had been staying at Kudakwashe Bhasikiti’s Mwenezi orphanage before their fall out with the former Zanu PF heavyweight leading to their eviction, were arrested last Friday over allegedly poaching different wild animals using an unregistered firearm.
Following their eviction from the orphanage, the self-proclaimed healers initially camped just adjacent to Bhasikiti’s orphanage which is a few kilometres from Rutenga Growth Point but were later chased away by the Messenger of Court resulting in them opening a new home in the bush area of Altonburg Range where they ended up committing the offence they are now facing.
After initially appearing before Mwenezi Magistrate Gift Manyika on March 31, the 11 accused who include Kakono, Gracious Muchenje (51), Madzudzo Chikwenya (53), Benjamin Chuma (48), Joshua Muketiwa (29), Phanuel Dembetembe (57), Takunda Chisango (26), Zeb Musandipa (63), Innocent Chakanyuka (18), Norest Mapetere (26) and John Masaiti (48) were all remanded in custody to April 12 pending trial.
Presented by prosecutor Hardlife Machando, it is the State case that between March 17 and to 27, 2023, the accused who had set up a camp in the Altonburg Range bush area began to hunt wild animals using a firearm.
When members of the public heard suspicious incessant gun shots in the bushy area where the accused were camping, they immediately alerted Mwenezi detectives.
Upon instituting a thorough search at the accused’s camp, detectives recovered two Zebra skins hidden underground, three skins of Impala, two Eland horns and two Kudu horns which led to the arrest of accused persons.
According to the State, the firearm which was used in committing the offense was not recovered.
The State further opposed bail insisting that accused who do not have any identity documents had no fixed residential place.
By the time of writing all the accused were still in remand prison pending trial.

Perpetua Murungweni

Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) Masvingo has confirmed the arrest of five armed robbers in Mkwasine after the police picked information from a community WhatsApp group and traced the culprits.
The five suspected armed robbers Eriya Gambare (38), Freddy Hlupeko (18), Givemore Sakajero (43), Isaac Tongani (33) and Cosmas Dzamara (age not given).
Four of them are from Harare expect Hlupeko who is from Zaka.
On April 1, 2023 at around 3 pm, the five robbers reportedly arrived at Chehondo tuckshops in Mkwasine with a Toyota Hilux and two of them Gambero and Sakajero went into one shop where they took US$ 10 from Ladywin Bila at gun point.
The two then proceeded to Vongai Chirume’s shop where they took US$ 20 from her at gunpoint and then went to farm number 10 where they took yet to be known amount of money.
Around 6 pm that same day, information circulated around a community WhatsApp group of the robberies that had occurred in the afternoon and police managed to follow the robbers and caught them at Robson Manyika Business Center in Mkwasine and arrested them.
ZRP Masvingo Provincial spokesperson Kudakwashe Dhewa confirmed the incident and said police recovered a pistol with a magazine of two rounds which was in the glove compart, electric shockers and dagga.
“The five robbers were arrested and taken to CID Chiredzi. Police recovered a pistol with a magazine of two rounds, electric shockers and dagga.
“We also want to thank the community for working with the police and passing on of information on their community WhatsApp groups that led to the arrest of these culprits. We also urge them not to fully rely on the WhatsApp groups but the communities should report to the police,” said Dhewa.

Branton Matondo

MUTARE-National Social Security Authority (NSSA) has raised concern over the sorry state of reporting systems on work related accidents and deaths, a feat that has seen national fatality rates rise.
With global work related accidents statistics sitting at 19 percent, the case of Zimbabwe has reached a worse extent as records indicate a 30 percent rise.
Addressing journalists at a recently held Engineers workshop on occupational hazards and safety at Leopards Rock Hotel Acting NSSA Chief Executive Officer Charles Shava said the major cause for such unfortunate statistics is poor reporting systems
“We are not where we want to be when it comes to work place accidents and carnages. There are very high fatalities because majority of them are not reported because our reporting system is not that good,” said Shava.
According to NSSA, the dominance of the informal sector in Zimbabwe’s national economic structure has led to the rise of unreported fatalities.
Shava added that there are even more fatalities that vanish without being reported in the sector.
“To make matters worse, the informal situation of our economy lacks reporting systems. In fact, the actual number of deaths and work place injuries is far much higher than the statistics we are recording,” he added.
For the past three years, lost time injury rates have decreased from 2.8 to 1.8 percent.
Shava however said there is need to improve though resources are scarce.
“Causes for the decrease are because NSSA is working very hard. Lost time injury rates is a measure we use to assess how we are performing in terms of controlling time that has been lost as a result of injuries. But as you can see, we were at 2.8 and that has been reduced to 1.8 percent, it’s not a position we want as NSSA though it’s an improvement. NSSA is doing very well under harsh circumstances, both on resources and Covid-19. We have been working under very difficult conditions under Covid-19 but our aim is to continue pushing it down so that we meet the standard,” he added.
Bulawayo-based engineer Jacob Muguni at the side lines of the event told this publication that there is need to raise awareness across Zimbabwe to cut the national rate from 30 percent.
“One other issue that has been highlighted is combining Zimbabwe Institute of Engineers (ZIE), the Engineering Council of Zimbabwe (ECZ) and NSSA in fighting the rise of these accidents,” said Muguni.
He added that there is need to train all engineers and responsible personnel to improve personal awareness.
Zvimba Rural District Council Engineer Tapiwa Nhemwa also said there is a lot that needs to be done especially in local government sector to evade work related accidents.
“From a local authority point of view, work related accidents are caused by lack of training or lack of due diligence and necessary working environment. There is lot that needs to be done in the local authorities in terms of providing safety through PPE. There is also need to provide Safety and Health Education departments with training to personnel within local authority systems,” he said.

…As they rescue their recently rehabilitated daughter from a known ‘drug dealer’

Beatific Gumbwanda

CHIREDZI-A family here recently blamed the local police over failure to heed to the national call to arrest identified drug dealers after their daughter openly implicated a popular figure (name withheld) for selling her mutoriro (Crystal meth).
Ridson Mupezeni, a businessman in Chiredzi is accusing local Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) officers for failing to properly handle the case where his daughter Eneles Mupezeni (26) was reportedly caught red handed at the alleged drug dear’s residence taking drugs.
In an interview Eneless Mupezeni who recently came back from rehabilitation at Ngomahuru after she had been affected by drugs, told this publication that they buy Mutoriro from the female drug lord at the cost of US$ 3 and they are even offered a room to sniff from.
“We are offered a room at her homestead to sniff from after we buy the drug from her. Less than 10 grams of Mutoriro costs US$ 3,” alleged Eneless.
His father said he is saddened by the fact that it cost him a lot to rehabilitate her daughter at Ngomahuru and is pained by the fact that someone, well known for dealing in drugs is left walking free after being caught red handed selling drugs to his daughter.
“On the 19th of March, my daughter Eneless who recently came back from Ngomahuru rehabilitation centre was seen in company of a lady (name withheld), a woman best known for selling drugs going to the drug peddler’s home. A neighbour alerted my wife who quickly responded by storming the peddler’s residence, though she was locked outside before she climbed the fence to rescue our daughter.
“(She) alerted my daughter to come out. With two other boys, my daughter came out speeding from the room they were taking drugs. The matter was then reported to the Police, where a senior detective (name withheld) openly told them that the peddler was untouchable therefore they were wasting their time pursuing the issue.
“I got to the police station to find out more, that is when I was referred to the Officer-In-Charge, Madam Ndava who also consulted her boss, Madam Muleya who ordered the peddler to be brought to the police station.
“The matter was later taken by I.C Crime Raki, who argued that the peddler can’t be arrested for selling my daughter drugs because there is no substantial evidence found, though I insisted that the court handled the matter. I was told that I should find somewhere to report my case if I insisted that a docket be opened for the case,” said Mupezeni.
In a telephone interview, the peddler admitted that she was once involved in drug dealing way back and that she did not sell drugs to Eneless, who in fact came to her house asking for US$ 20 change.
“No, I never sold any drugs to Eneless, in fact she came to my home asking for US$ 20 change which I didn’t have. I used to sell drugs long back but I am no longer doing that,” she said.
President Emerson Mnangagwa once said the police should arrest anyone found high on drugs to question him/her when they sober up on who sold them those drugs in order for the police to arrest them.
Most drug dealers in Chiredzi are reportedly dealing with some individual law enforcement agents who will later protect them for a fee, helping them evade police raids and arrests.