Published by the government of Zimbabwe
16 April 2008
opinion
Harare — THE MDC-T stayaway flopped yesterday after people ignored the strike, triggering acts of violence by frustrated opposition youths but these were quickly suppressed by the police.
Police arrested 36 opposition youths countrywide who were by last night still assisting them with investigations.
A bus belonging to Nyamweda Bus Company was yesterday morning burnt and reduced to a shell by MDC-T youths as the stayaway called by the opposition turned violent.
MDC-T called for the stayaway to compel the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission to release results of the presidential election but Zimbabweans ignored the call, leaving the opposition to vent its anger on innocent people and their property.
The call for the stayaway follows the dismissal of the party's urgent application seeking an order to compel ZEC to release the results by High Court judge Justice Tendayi Uchena on Monday.
In a bid to force workers to stay home and to scare people from going about their normal business, MDC-T thugs blocked roads with rocks and burnt old motor vehicle tyres along some roads in Harare.
The Nyamweda bus was carrying 68 passengers, mostly cross-border traders, and their wares from Botswana.
Two of the passengers -- Simangaliso Vumbu (28) and Hassani Africa Muzozi of Malawi -- were injured.
Vumbu was taken to Harare Central Hospital while Muzozi was treated by an ambulance crew and allowed to proceed with the final leg of his journey to Malawi.
Imported electrical gadgets, including DVD players, pots and plates belonging to the traders were burnt.
Chief police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Wayne Bvudzijena said the job action had turned violent contrary to the MDC-T's claims that it was going to be peaceful.
"A Nyamweda bus was burnt early this morning (0340hrs) at Warren Park roundabout. The bus was carrying mainly informal traders from Plumtree. At Warren Park roundabout the driver observed a fire on the roadside and as he tried to reverse, the bus was attacked from behind with stones," he said.
"One of the attackers brought a piece of a burning tyre and torched the bus. As the passengers scurried from the bus, one person dislocated an ankle and another was burnt on the arm while trying to retrieve his property from the burning bus," he said.
Asst Comm Bvudzijena said in a separate incident, a Zupco bus was stoned and five windowpanes smashed early in the morning in Kambuzuma. No one was injured.
He said vehicles belonging to poultry company Irvine's and bakery firm Lobels were also stoned in Budiriro 5 where one passenger sustained minor injuries.
"In St Mary's, Mbare, Kuwadzana and Westgate, reports of random illegal roadblocks were reported. The police quickly removed the barriers while in St Mary's MDC-T supporters threatened those who wanted to collect their vehicles from car parks. The police quickly responded and the situation was brought under control," said Asst Comm Bvudzijena.
A Zimpost truck was overturned in Kuwadzana 3 while a gang of MDC-T youths numbering between 25 and 30 smashed a Delta Beverages truck at Gazaland in Highfield.
The youths stoned several cars at Chitubu Shopping Centre in Glen Norah and Mbare, where they also smashed the windowpanes of a Gwangwava bus and a commuter omnibus.
The 33 youths were arrested in Harare, Bulawayo, Gweru, Mutare and Marondera for barricading roads, stoning cars and buses, behaving in a threatening manner and preventing people from going to work.
Yesterday evening the youths stoned 10 cars, including a Herald truck, in Glen View.
At the University of Zimbabwe, some rowdy students went on the rampage and attacked a commercial bank at the campus, destroying property worth billions of dollars.
The assailants, suspected to be members of the Zimbabwe National Students' Union, approached CBZ Bank located at the campus in the afternoon and threw missiles, breaking some windowpanes.
They also threw around fliers in which they made several demands, some of which the institution of higher learning had no control over.
By the time police moved in, the rowdy students had already dispersed.
Ironically, there is an armed security guard manning the bank.
When The Herald arrived at the scene, police were keeping vigil after shocked bank staff had closed the doors.
Stones could be seen strewn on the front end of the bank and front windowpanes broken.
UZ Vice-Chancellor Professor Levi Nyagura said he doubted if people behind the attack were students from the institution, suggesting that they could be people with a hidden political agenda.
"These are either people from outside with an external agenda or expelled students because preliminary indications I have are that no student from this institution would do such a thing. The people have just targeted the UZ because it is an easy target and would quickly draw attention," said Prof Nyagura.
He said some of the complaints about high tuition fees were without merit since all State universities had been directed to charge $3 billion this semester.
"So why target UZ alone when all State universities are charging the same amounts? It's because it is easy to draw attention since it is in Harare. The amount of $3 billion is very little to attract this attack," he said.
Asst Comm Bvudzijena said police were aware that the so-called democratic resistance committees recently activated by the MDC-T orchestrated the violent activities.
"The National Reaction Force will remain deployed on the ground to ensure everyone's safety and security."
Roads in Budiriro 3, Glen View 8, Highfield and at Zengeza 2 Shopping Centre were barricaded with stones and burning tyres early in the morning although the perpetrators were nowhere to be seen.
In Mufakose, the situation was calm with OK Supermarket and a Zimpost banking hall opening late to allow management to assess the situation.
Commuters who woke up early in Glen View, Budiriro, Glen Norah and Highfield to go to work were stranded after commuter omnibuses were stoned in the morning, resulting in transport operators withdrawing their vehicles.
Although some workers managed to report for duty later, they were turned away or locked out.
"We turned up for work, but we were surprised to see our offices locked up. We cannot stay at home and tomorrow have our salaries cut because of this so-called mass protest," said an angry worker who refused to be identified.
Another equally enraged worker said it was not fair for companies to hold employees to ransom because of their political agendas.
"Companies are in business, not politics. Why should they use us to settle their scores?" he said.
Banks, supermarkets and other service providers, including shops close to MDC-T's headquarters at Harvest House along Nelson Mandela Avenue in Harare, were open.
It was business as usual for some companies in Willowvale, Lochnivar and Southerton industrial areas where workers could be seen going about their daily duties.
Home industries in Glen View and Highfield's Gazaland area were also operating normally.
An entrepreneur who preferred to be identified as Baba George said the strike was misguided.
"The stayaway is misguided and fruitless as there is no point staying at home and watch your family starve," he said.
Martha Sibanda, who runs a second-hand clothes store in Bulawayo, told AFP:
"I voted and want to know the result, but if I stay away indefinitely then what is my family going to eat?"
Police were on high alert maintaining law and order and were visible at shopping centres and bus terminuses in most suburbs to ensure peace prevailed.
Police also mounted roadblocks along all major roads from different suburbs to the city centre.
Previous calls for mass strikes have largely flopped because a large number of Zimbabweans are now self-employed and cannot afford a day off from work.
In Glen View 1, some rowdy youths stoned commuter omnibuses at around 5.30am in an attempt to force people to join their illegal stayaway.
Most of commuter bus operators were willing to ferry people to the city centre so that they could conduct their usual business.
At around 9.30am when the situation was calm, some commuter omnibus operators took advantage to overcharge commuters demanding amounts ranging between $60 million and $100 million per trip.
Police spokesperson Superintendent Andrew Phiri said police reacted swiftly at Machipisa Shopping Centre after opposition youths driving around in cars attempted to stop people from going about their usual business.
Asst Comm Bvudzijena said the situation in Mashonaland West, Masvingo, Mashonaland Central, Matabeleland North and South was calm with no major incidents reported.
In Bulawayo, MDC-T youths stoned Samuel Sipepa Nkomo's shop at the corner of George Silundika Street and 9th Avenue in protest over his decision to open his supermarket despite the call for a stayaway.
Nkomo is the MDC-T Member of the House of Assembly-elect for Lobengula.
All major shops, retail outlets, banks and other business were operating at full throttle while it was also business as usual in industrial sites such as Donnington, Belmont and Kelvin North.
But there were isolated reports of employers turning away staff who had reported for work.
In the Midlands, the stayaway was a flop as almost all business premises were opened although a number opened late to gauge the mood.
In Gweru, only a few shops that included Truworth's and Topics were closed.
The Minister of Information and Publicity, Dr Sikhanyiso Ndlovu, said the call for a stayaway by the MDC-T was a sign that the party's leader Morgan Tsvangirai and his lieutenants were immature and were behaving like trade unionists.
"The call for the strike shows that Tsvangirai and his colleagues are irresponsible. His (Tsvangirai) behaviour does not reflect a person who wants the country's highest office because he is still behaving like a trade unionist," said Dr Ndlovu.
"It's surprising because they want to fight at the courts and on the street at the same time. It shows that the party has no respect for the courts and is only interested in cowboy politics."
Dr Ndlovu said the fact that Zimbabweans ignored the stayaway showed that they were mature and responsible as a stayaway would only serve to worsen the economic challenges the country was facing.
He said Zimbabweans had shown their maturity by being peaceful before, during and after the elections.
In Chinhoyi, it was business as usual as workers ignored the strike.
"I am surprised that there is such a call for workers to stay at home, but I am equally ignorant of the reasons for the stayaway," said a shop attendant who preferred anonymity.
A survey in the town showed people were doing their normal shopping while most small-scale traders and businesses continued with their operations.
The situation was the same in Mashonaland Central where people ignored the stayaway call by MDC-T.
Most shops in Bindura, including TM, OK and Daleen, opened their doors to the public the whole day and people were shopping freely.
Farmers were collecting their inputs for winter cropping at the Grain Marketing Board depot.
By Zvamaida Murwira, Takunda Maodza, Peter Matambanadzo, Freeman Razemba And Bureaux
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Please get the facts straight. Samuel Sipepa Nkomo does not own that grocery store anymore. He leased out the store over 6 months ago to focus on his campaign. He supports the stay away fully so please correct this lest he be misunderstood.