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Corruption, nepotism rife as Zimbabweans scramble to get Covid-19 vaccines

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BY JEFFREY MOYO

More than a month ago, she lost her parents, brother, and wife, to the coronavirus.

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Then her fiancé battled Covid-19, but 27-year-old Melinda Gavi said she had not contracted the disease.

Gavi joined crowds scrambling to get vaccinated at Parirenyatwa hospital in the Zimbabwean capital Harare even though she was previously sceptical about getting vaccinated against the dreaded disease.

Her parents, brother, and wife were equally sceptical of the Covid-19 vaccines before they were visited by the disease, which eventually claimed their lives.

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In a country of about 15 million people, nearly 5.5 million have had at least had one dose of the vaccine the Reuters Covid-19 tracker, which assuming that each person needs two doses, represents 18.8% of the population.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) confirmed in October that Zimbabwe had received 943 200 COVID-19 vaccine doses from the global Covax facility in September and October for its ongoing vaccination campaign.

IPS has been following the rollout of the vaccines in various centres over the past few months, recording people’s personal experiences in the queues.

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Gavi says it has taken her days to get vaccinated.

“This is my third day coming here at Parirenyatwa to try and get vaccinated,” Gavi told IPS as she stood in a long and meandering queue at Zimbabwe’s biggest hospital.

About 200 people gathered at the back of the hospital, some looking tired as they lingered in the queue.

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Some sat on the pavements and or flower beds, waiting for their turn to get vaccinated in the slow-moving queue.

“We have limited vaccines, and often on a day we are vaccinating just 80 people and everybody else often just goes back home without getting vaccinated,” a nurse who refused to be named as she was unauthorised to speak to the media, told IPS.

In February this year, Zimbabwe began vaccinating its citizens against coronavirus after receiving a donation of 200 000 doses of China’s Sinopharm vaccine.

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But when the vaccine first arrived, it was met with growing scepticism from social media platforms like WhatsApp, Twitter, and Facebook, which fuelled the vaccine hesitancy.

This is no longer the case. Now healthcare workers have to battle hordes of people scrambling for the vaccine.

“With time, as more and more people got vaccinated without severe safety fears, the public became more assured, and demand for vaccines gradually started to rise,” said epidemiologist Dr Grant Murewanhema in Harare.

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In Bulawayo, on July 8, in the presence of IPS, at the United Bulawayo Hospital, a nurse moved along the queue of people waiting to get vaccinated, counting up to 60 recipients.

She told the rest to return the next day.

She told them she only had enough vaccines for 60 people.

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At number 60 was 47-year-old Jimmy Dzingai, who said he was a truck driver.

“Oh, better, at least I am going to get vaccinated,” said Dzingai then as he heaved a sigh of relief, folding his hands across his chest.

Meanwhile, as they were told to leave, others did so but grumbled as they filed outside the hospital, some waving their face masks in anger, shouting at hospital authorities for turning them away.

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“This is not the first time I am coming here to try and get vaccinated. I have been here four times, and this is my fifth day starting mid-June – only to get excuses,” 54-year-old Limukani Dlela, a man who said he lived in Matsheumhlope, a medium density suburb in Bulawayo, told IPS saying that at times the excuse was that there not enough vaccines available and at other times there were a limited number of vaccines.

Corruption and nepotism have characterised this Southern African country’s bitter war against Covid-19, and many people like Dzingai, the truck driver, have not been spared by the rot.

As Dzingai stood at the end of the queue, four middle-aged women strode past him and all others, going straight to the head of the queue and quickly got vaccinated and left.

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According to one of the nurses who manned the queue, “the four were staff members and couldn’t wait in the queue like everybody else.”

The nurse said this even though the four women, after receiving doses, immediately left the premises just like any other ordinary person.

“I was talking to my bosses right now, and my truck has been loaded for me to take the delivery to Zambia,” he said.

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“I have told my bosses I was getting my vaccine. Instead, you are telling me I’m not going to be vaccinated.

“You should get water to inject me and give me the vaccine certificate.

“I will not leave this place without the vaccine,” swore the truck driver.

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But the nurse would have none of it.

“You won’t be vaccinated today. That won’t happen, unfortunately,” she said.

Dzingai vowed to stay put at the hospital until he was vaccinated, but because the four women who jumped the queue and got vaccinated before him, it meant he (Dzingai) and three others who had waited at the end of the queue had to leave without the jab.

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With many Zimbabweans like Dzingai now eager to get vaccinated, the government has so far authorised the use of China’s Sinovac and Sinopharm, Russia’s Sputnik V, and India’s Covaxin and the United States’ Johnson and Johnson vaccines.

It has not, however, been easy for people to get the doses.

Now bribery has become the order of the day at Zimbabwe’s hospitals like Sally Mugabe Referral hospital in the capital Harare.

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Lydia Gono (24), from Southertorn middle-income suburb in Harare, said she had to ‘switch to her purse’, which is local parlance for a bribe, to get quickly vaccinated at Sally Mugabe hospital, the closest medical facility to her home.

“I spent close to a week trying to get vaccinated here without success, but today I just rolled a US 10 dollar note in my hand and shook the hand of a nurse who manned the queue, leaving the note in her hand.

“I was taken to the front and vaccinated without any delay,” Gono told IPS.

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Tired of the corruption and nepotism and the delaying tactics characterising the vaccination process at public healthcare centres, many middle-income earners like 35-year-old Daiton Sununguro have opted for the private medical centres to get their vaccines parting with US$40 for a single dose.

“Paying is better than having to wait for many hours before getting the vaccine at public healthcare facilities. I will still come back and pay the other US 40 dollars for my second dose,” Sununguro told IPS at a posh private medical facility in Harare’s Mount Pleasant low-density suburb. – IPS

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In the community

Crocodile attacks claim 9 lives, injure 11

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BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

A surge in crocodile attacks has left a trail of death and destruction in Zimbabwe, with 9 fatalities and 11 injuries reported in the last two months.

According to a statement released by the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks), 49 human-crocodile conflict cases were recorded during the same period, resulting in the loss of 44 cattle and 60 goats.

The Mid-Zambezi region, which includes Lake Kariba, Angwa River, and Hunyani River, was the hardest hit, with 19 cases reported. The Central region recorded 14 cases, while 16 cases were reported in other areas, including Matopo, Harare, North-West Matabeleland, and South-East Low-veld.

ZimParks has urged communities to exercise extreme caution, especially around water bodies, during the current rain season. The authority has advised communities to ensure that livestock and children are not left unattended near rivers or lakes, and to take precautions when engaging in water activities such as fishing, swimming, and domestic chores.

To mitigate the situation, ZimParks is working closely with local authorities and conservation partners to raise public awareness and promote safety practices. The authority has emphasized its commitment to finding a balance between ensuring public safety and conserving wildlife.

As the situation continues to unfold, ZimParks has appealed to the public to remain vigilant and to report any crocodile sightings or attacks to the authorities.

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Nkayi

Nkayi man sentenced to 20 years for murdering patron

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BY STAFF REPORTER

In a High Court circuit sitting in Hwange, a 23-year-old man from Gwelutshena was sentenced to 20 years in prison for murder.

Mtabisi Ndimande was convicted of killing a 39-year-old man in a brutal axe attack that occurred on August 5, 2024, at DZ Sports Bar in Inyathi.

The court heard that Ndimande had been drinking beer with the deceased when an argument ensued.

Despite intervention from a security guard, Ndimande pulled out an axe and struck the deceased on the head.

The blow caused the deceased to collapse, while the axe remained embedded in his head. The offender then removed the axe and walked away.

The deceased bled profusely and was taken to the hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries on August 6, 2024.

The police responded to the scene and recovered the axe.

 

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Hwange

Drugs causing mayhem in Victoria Falls

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BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

The scourge of drugs and substance abuse is tearing families apart in the city of Victoria Falls as young people resort to dangerous substances to cope with mounting economic problems.

Victoria Falls, like most urban areas in Zimbabwe, is battling against a surge in cases of drugs and substance abuse, which has seen the government launching various programmes to curb the crisis.

Eslina Sibanda, a Mkhosana resident whose son was forced to drop out of college due to drug addiction, narrated her heart-rending ordeal in an interview with NewsHub.

“He was a bright student, but then he started experimenting with mbanje and other substances,” Sibanda said.

“Before we knew it, he was hooked. We tried to get him help, but it was too late.

“He dropped out of college and he now struggles to find a job.”

According to the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency, approximately 750 000 people in Zimbabwe use cannabis, while 150 000 use other illicit drugs.

The same report noted that 14.6 percent of males and 5.6 percent of females aged between 15 and 65 years engage in hazardous or harmful drinking.

In a dramatic event that gripped Victoria Falls last November, 82 year-old Paul Siangapi was forced to take his son, Wonder, to court after he attempted to stab a family member in a drug-fuelled rage.

Siangapi pleaded with the magistrate to send his 40year-old son to jail for years, saying after the death of his mother, almost a decade ago, he started smoking cannabis (mbanje) and abusing alcohol.

He said Wonder became abusive even to his grandchildren as a result of drug abuse.

The magistrate subsequently ruled that he must be referred to the Mlondolozi Mental Health Prison in Bulawayo where he is being treated for his addiction together with seven others from Victoria Falls who were facing charges of committing offences under the influence of drugs.

Siangapi told News Hub from his Chinotimba home that his life had become hell on earth because of his son’s drugs problem.

“He is ok there (in prison),” Siangapi said. “I was always running away from him. He would lock the gate, deprive me of food and, at times, l would sleep in the car outside the gate because of him.”

On 18 February, Information minister, Jenfan Muswere, said the police had arrested 9, 527  people and dismantled 79 illegal drug bases as part of a countrywide crackdown on drug and substance abuse between 1 September 2024 and 31 January 2025.

Muswere told a post-Cabinet briefing that 616 drug suppliers and 8 911 drug users had been arrested during the operation.

The government has also established three new rehabilitation centres for drug addicts in Victoria Falls, Harare and Kwekwe.

The ministry of Health and Child Care notes that substance abuse is a major contributor to mental health disorders, including depression, anxiety, and psychosis.

Mental health experts say a combination of factors that include poverty, unemployment, and lack of access to education and healthcare drive young people into drugs and substance abuse.

“Young people are turning to substances as a way to cope with the stress and uncertainty of their lives,” said Silvester Nyoni, a local psychologist. “We need to address the root causes of this crisis, rather than just treating the symptoms.”

Rufaro Nyakwende, a social worker at the Zimbabwe Civil Liberties and Drug Network, said the impact of substance abuse was far-reaching as affected not only individuals, but also families, communities, and the economy.

“Substance abuse is leading to tracking substance use,” Nyakwende said.

“At the end of the day, people have mental issues such as depression, anxiety, and this leads to interest in another driver of tracking substance use, which is peer pressure. A lot of children experience peer pressure through interactions, observation, learning, and playing.

“People may admire the effects of someone using drugs and end up using those drugs themselves. This is another driver of tracking substance use. When they continue using drugs, it also leads to mental health issues like depression, stress, anxiety, and this is what leads to a high risk of suicide,” added Nyakwende.

She said the community also exerts too much pressure on young people.

“There’s also the issue of social pressures. The community expects certain things from people,” Nyakwende added.

“For instance, by a certain age, you’re expected to have achieved certain milestones, such as having a proper job and a family.

“But when you fail to meet these expectations, it can lead to feelings of inadequacy and low self-esteem, which can contribute to higher rates of suicide.”

The government launched the National Substance Abuse Policy in 2020 as one of the ways to deal with the scourge.

For Nyoni, however, more needs to be done to provide support and resources for those struggling with addiction.

“We need to increase funding for treatment centres, counselling services, and support groups,” he said.

“We also need to raise awareness about the dangers of substance abuse and provide education and job training programs for young people.”

SOURCE: NEWS HUB

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