The Sunday News
Vusumuzi Dube, Senior Reporter
TODAY, Sunday 26 August marks day 549 consecutive days of an-anti litter campaign, initiated by one Bulawayo man in a bid to revive the city’s once lustrous reputation as one of the cleanest in the African continent.
The campaign which started as just a one man initiative has since grown with a number of, companies, celebrities, business people, church leaders and the Bulawayo City Council endorsing it as one of the strategies of waste management in the city.
Tonderai Shoko, who started the campaign with the support of his family in 2017 after being irked by the growing number of litter bugs in the city said he was overwhelmed by the support he had received to date saying he was hopeful that the campaign would encourage a culture of responsibility among the city’s residents.
In the anti-litter campaign, Shoko goes around the city picking up litter, educating residents on the importance of waste management and posting on his various social media platforms of the campaign.
At times he is joined by celebrities in his drive all in a bid to encourage residents to develop an anti-litter mentality. The campaign is now running under the theme “It does not take much to make a difference, let’s keep Bulawayo Clean”.
“It has been a long journey; from where I started to where the campaign is today I however remain honoured from the support I am receiving. As an individual I have also learnt a lot in terms of waste management and I especially enjoy imparting knowledge to residents as we go about our the anti-litter drive.
“What I am happy about is that from when I started the campaign has attracted the attention of various companies that are willing to assist us in fighting pollution. The aim of the campaign was to impress upon Bulawayo residents to keep the city clean, in an endevour to reclaim the city’s status as the cleanest in the region.
“Initially we really didn’t plan on it being a campaign but showing an act of responsibility and trying to get people to emulate what we are doing,” said Shoko.
He said the Bulawayo City Council had also seen the importance of the campaign and were now going to provide material to be used by the team as they continue with their waste management drive, having set themselves on a 1000 day target to cleaning up the city.
Mr Shoko said BCC had promised to provide them with refuse bags, litter pokers and educational material.
“BCC is being very supportive on this campaign, as well as the police, we will soon take delivery of refuse bags, litter pokers and educational material, all along I have been funding this campaign from my own pocket even printing t-shirts to celebrate every day’s milestone.
“The problem is that people think this issue of waste management should be handled by environmentalists or organisations that for focus on environmental issues, forgetting that if we relax and allow our city to be dirty this will go on to affect us through such things as Cholera outbreaks,” said Shoko.
The self made environmentalist said his next challenge was growing the campaign such that it spreads to other towns and cities hence spreading a culture of cleanliness which he said was key in fighting such scourges as Cholera.
“We want to encourage other people to take an active role in this. Change starts with us and we need to nurture this in our future generations. Also we have received a donation from a local company Asphalt product, which gave us 10 drums to modify into dustbins,” said Shoko.
He added; “Various friends and celebrities have joined. It takes a small step to effect a big and positive change. What we are saying is if people see what we are doing then they will emulate this noble cause.
“I believe that if we make it a lifestyle it will ultimately rub off on to other people. So we are saying people should post pictures of themselves throwing litter in dustbins. Our motto is: It does not take much to make a difference, and we hope citizens will come aboard this cause.”
Commenting on the initiative, Bulawayo City Council senior public relations officer, Mrs Nesisa Mpofu said it was such ideas which they encouraged residents to come up with as they helped restore the city’s status as one of the most hygiene conscious in the region.
She said one commendable feature of the facility was that it did not require any financial injection but was just about an individual coming in to play a role in waste management.
“This is one culture which we continuously encourage our residents to exhibit. At the end of the day, it is not about the Bulawayo City Council or the Environmental Management Agency, it is about all of us taking responsibility in the cleanliness of our city.
“When Shoko first started his campaign we were closely following it on social media such that when he approached us we were very much willing to land a hand in provision of equipment required for his initiative, we are also working with him in distributing information booklets on waste management,” said Mrs Mpofu.
EMA provincial manager for Bulawayo Metropolitan Province, Mr Decent Ndlovu said what was now required was for people to a cue from Shoko by taking it upon themselves to rid the city of litter.
“We have constantly released information on the dirtiest suburbs in the city, we do not do that to denigrate the suburbs but we simply want people staying in these suburbs to realise that they also have a duty to spruce up their own suburbs.
“As the adage goes cleanliness begins at home therefore I feel let’s take Shoko’s initiative serious and also start to pick up litter where we stay, this will surely go a long way in fighting litter within our towns and cities,” he said.
