The Sunday News
Vusumuzi Dube, Senior Reporter
ZIMBABWE has now recorded a total of 23 positive Covid-19 patients with Bulawayo now toping the list with 10 confirmed cases with security officials in the city now upping surveillance mechanisms to ensure people adhere to the 21-day lockdown.
According to statistics provided by the Ministry of Health and Child Care on Wednesday night, the National TB Reference Laboratory in Bulawayo, on Wednesday, tested 23 samples of which five tested positive, all of which were local transmissions.
“The National Microbiology Reference Laboratory tested 28 samples (Harare – 23, Mashonaland East- 3, Mutare – I and Masvingo – 1) and all were negative for COV ID-19. Additionally, the National TB Reference Laboratory in Bulawayo tested 23 samples, and five were positive for COVID-19. All the five cases were due to local transmission,” reads part of the update from the Ministry.
To date the country has recorded three deaths due to the pandemic and one case of full recovery.
Meanwhile, security forces have increased their presence in the city amid concerns that a number of people were ignoring the provisions of the 21-day lockdown.
This news crew observed that a number of vehicles and individuals were being turned back at various roadblocks in the city, with officers only allowing those with clearance letters to pass.
Bulawayo provincial police spokesperson, Inspector Abednico Ncube said they had upped their presence in the city after realizing that a number of people were ignoring the provisions of the lockdown.
He said their presence was not to intimidate people but to simple assist them to adhere to the lockdown guidelines.
“Police and other security forces have indeed upped their deployment in the city to assist people to adhere to the guidelines of the lockdown. Personnel manning roadblocks have also been turning away vehicles that are not supposed to be in town, this as a means of decongesting the Central Business District.
“We are however concerned that in places like Matshobana, Mabuthweni, Mzilikazi, Magwegwe and even Pumula, people are walking through the industrial area, past the railway station, avoiding police roadblocks, to make it into the CBD, we have deployed our officers to these undesignated routes and arrests will surely be made,” said Inspector Ncube.
Globally the Covid-19 pandemic has infected over 2 million people with 134 373 deaths by Thursday morning.
