….cite victimization from drug lords as reason behind
Perpetua Murungweni
Residents in Masvingo have said most people fear exposing those who practice drug trafficking and consumers of drugs and substances in their communities as whistleblowing leads to victimization by drug lords.
Some people claim to know the drug dealers but they have said they cannot do anything about it as they fear for their lives—they fear that they can be attacked by the drug dealers since most of these peddlers are bullies in the community.
“We know these people who are peddlers of drugs and substance abuse in our communities but we fear to report them to the police because we are afraid that they may attack us since most are bullies,” said Taenda Chaputa (not real name).
Another citizen said they are afraid of the drug lords who operate in cartels or syndicates.
“The other reason why we fear exposing these people is because most of them operate in gangs, they might mobilize and come for your life if they find out that you are the one who reported them to the police,” said Innocent Chimuti (not real name).
Nyaradzai Munyoro the chairperson of a movement named Masvingo Says No To Drugs, an anti-drug group that started last year in June indicated she learnt how bad the situation had become at a workshop held at Mucheke Old People’s home where residents discussed challenges they face concerning drugs and substance abuse.
“We had an anti-drug workshop at Old People’s Home where we invited residents and talked about the challenges they are facing and most people said they know most of the drug peddlers in the community but they fear victimization if they report these drug dealers to the police.
“The group is also of great help to the community by reducing the number of kids consuming drugs through therapeutic sessions, since I am also a therapist and sometimes visit residents door to door offering free therapy sessions to the victims of drug and substance abuse and the group also exposes drug pins as I gather information about them from the victims I work with,” added Munyoro.
Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) Masvingo Provincial Spokesperson Inspector Kudakwakwe Dhewa said they were running an anti-drug blitz and urged people to give them information that leads to the arrest of these people.
“As police, we are running an anti-drug blitz and we urge members of the public to assist the operation by providing police with information that may lead to the arrest of the criminals,” said Dhewa.
Concerning the issue of victimization, Dhewa said there were no reports so far made of victimized people and he urged those in fear of victimization to seek protection from the police.
“Since we started the drug blitz, we have not yet received any reports of victimization from those who assist the police with information and we urge those in fear of victimization to seek help and protection from the police,” he added.
He also advised the public to maintain secrecy with the information they have and also when they report, they should use the police’s WhatsApp number.
“People should try to ensure secrecy with the information that leads to the drug dealers, they should not disclose this information to anyone either friends or families but they should go and secretly report to their nearest police station for them to be safe because the police will never disclose who gave them the information.
“Using the police’s WhatsApp platform is also very important when tipping off the police because one won’t be seen in the police station or near the police station because sometimes these drug dealers won’t have information of who reported them but they can go to those seen coming outside police stations or near the station threatening them that someone told them they are the ones reported them,” said Dhewa.
ZRP recently launched a nationwide operation called ‘No to dangerous drugs and illicit substances’ and the operation is still in progress where the police is arresting those involved in drugs and substance trading.
from drug lords as reason behind
