The Sunday News
Vincent Gono, Features Editor
“THEY came with the morning sun like wise men from the East and yet they were angels of destruction. No one knows where they came from. They are still a mystery that is waiting to be solved, a Sudoku puzzle yet to be filled. They had tools of their trade – heavy iron bars in hand, wherever they got disciples from is anyone’s guess but they had a sea of followers.
“Their faces were unkempt, serious and a mask of anger with bloodshot eyes that have not seen better days but that betrays heavy intoxication from strong illegal substances. Whatever they were angry at no one knows but it didn’t take a class in village idiocy to figure out that they were serious and not going to leave the job undone. They coordinated very well and they were by no means cowards.
“The faces were not familiar and most of them could not speak the local language with fluency impressing that they were not from the neighbourhood or even from Bulawayo. They were evidently hired, but they knew their art,” said a police officer who cannot be named for ethical reasons. The officer is a traditional resident of Pumula suburb and knows almost all the problematic people but said the faces that opened shops for looting by thievery residents at Pumula East, Pumula North and Pumula Old before moving to Magwegwe were all very new.
At Pumula East they looted Choppies, Cover Supermarket and other small shops before setting on fire the former. They overturned a police vehicle and burnt it after overpowering police officers who had button sticks while they wielded iron bars and stones which they threw at the officers with a serious intention to harm.
“When we arrived the crowd dispersed for a while but when they realised we were not armed and we were few they came back and the stones that were thrown at us were frightening and threatening. We had button sticks only and they outnumbered us substantially,” said the officer.
Realising their life was at stake as the numbers were swelling, the officers sought refuge an inner room at the shopping complex and that gave the looters a chance to do what they wanted with no resistance.
The officer said that there were people whose work was to break into the shops and move on without taking anything made the story more complex, vexing and demand answers to the recent looting and wanton destruction of property in the country by hooligans. He added that there was evident abuse of drugs and substances such as dagga, Broncleer which in street lingo is known as bronco and ngoma.
The acts that have been described as sabotage left the country with a lot of repairing to do. The skirmishes undoubtedly dented the economy and destroyed the infrastructure suffice to say they were unnecessary and definitely not part of the Bulawayo culture of doing things. It was not the right thing to do even if it means people were expressing anger. Their anger was misplaced as it damaged and razed to ashes a lot of people’s properties who had virtually nothing to do with the politics of the day or whatever had invited people’s anger.
The looting was massive and so was the destruction. Evidently those that were sent to get angry on behalf of those that send them were unmindful of the consequences which only painfully manifested a few days after the horrific scenes.
A good number lost their employment which was their sole source of livelihood while millions of dollars will be needed to replace the stolen and burnt property. Last week’s scenes particularly in Harare and Bulawayo resembled a country at war. Roads were barricaded with stones and logs and the barricades were manned by youths who were evidently intoxicated some of whom were of school going age while little boys were the ones that were fronting the looting of shops.
Robots and other road signs were destroyed. Police stations and police property was either burnt or stoned and one will not be far from being correct to observe and suggest that those that were being used as rods of anger by political creatures at the top were supplied with the means and motivation to so.
Drugs were evidently part of the motivation, they incited, inspired and excited the looters where looting and property destruction was done with reckless abandon. There was an evident abrogation of normal consciousness and there is agreement among those that witnessed the acts that the wildness with which things were done betrayed heavy abuse of substances.
Bulawayo United Residents’ Association chairman Mr Winos Dube said they were shocked by the level of destruction inflicted on properties by the youths who were evidently drunk.
“As Bulawayo residents we are both shocked and disappointed by the magnitude of destruction that the city incurred. The youths were surely drunk and even bragged that they were manning tollgates where one would part with a penny or two to pass the barricaded road. The issue of drugs is a worrying phenomenon in the city among the youths and I call on authorities and stakeholders to help us control the vice.
“Parents especially should be the starting point. We have a role to control our kids. Churches should also play their part in ensuring a morally upright society. The communities and the police should work together to contain the abuse of drugs lest we will have a whole generation lost to drugs,” said Mr Dube.
He added that the abuse of drugs in town was contributing to a soaring violent crime rate, something he said should be contained.
Councillor for Pumula Ward 17 Skhululekile Moyo said the issue of drug abuse among the youths was a worrying trend that needed to be contained through stakeholder involvement. She said they were engaging the youths with Plan International with a view to divorce the youths from abuse of drugs and substances.
She called on resident to report those that sell illegal drugs as they were known in communities.
“I am particularly worried with the age group that is involved in drug abuse and what they are made to do after that. A noticeable trend in that kids were used in looting and destruction of property. We are however making efforts as a community to continue with the anti-drug campaign. We now have too many murder cases in our communities and that is caused by the drugs that the youths will be taking. We are also making efforts to conscript the youths in the neighbourhood watch committee,” she said.
She added that it was regrettable that some of the residents lost their properties to rowdy youths who were used to destroy and loot by what were believed to be political handlers. Councillor Moyo said there was rampant abuse of drugs by the youths who were redundant as there was no employment and there were little recreational centres for them to wail up time in.
Psychiatrist, Dr Nemache Mawere, said the amount of drug abuse in the youths was a cause for concern saying there were a number of reasons that led to youths engaging in criminal activities like the ones last week related to stress, unemployment, idleness, addiction to internet which was cut and gambling.
He said common drugs that were abused were bronco, mbanje, cocaine, and even heroine adding that to address the issue there was need to cut supply of the illicit drugs.
“There is need for a pro-active approach in dealing with the problem of drugs. There is no employment to keep these youths busy so they find relief in drugs and some of them become serious addicts. It’s interesting to note a number of them who were arrested after the lootings and destruction of property were now confessing insanity and yet its abuse of drugs. Today (Thursday) I saw three youths who claimed insanity when taken to court but in actual fact they are not insane. They are just drug addicts,” he said.
Dr Mawere said it was unfortunate that society was taking advantage of the idleness of youths to use them to engage in destruction of infrastructure.
