GOVERNMENT is concerned by the growing number of errant
police officers who are moonlighting as commuter omnibus drivers.
Of late, there have been growing incidents of rogue police
officers who are using their respectable stations in society to do that which
the public is being discouraged from doing.
Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) officers, who have smelt a
business opportunity presented by the recent ban on private transport
operators, are allegedly swapping handcuffs for the steering wheel of pirate — and
often unlicensed — commuter omnibuses and taxis knowing full well that they can
easily navigate through security checkpoints.
“As law enforcement agents, they should be maintaining
order, but they are acting otherwise. No one is above the law, thus culprits
need to be brought to book. What they are doing is illegal,” Home Affairs and
Cultural Heritage Minister Kazembe Kazembe told The Sunday Mail Society.
He said his office was inundated with reports of these
growing infractions.
“We need the community to help us: take pictures or videos
and send them to us. We need evidence to be able to make arrests, so this
automatically means collective effort is crucial.
“The Covid-19 war is for everyone. We need to arrest and
punish offenders to save lives,” he said.
Police officers are ordinarily expected to be exemplary
sticklers for the law by not only upholding it, but also using it to protect
the public and safeguard property.
Well, that is not always the case.
But there is one huge problem: There are now growing fears
that in their pursuit for easy money, the officers could be putting the
commuting public directly in harm’s way through offering a service that could
be a super spreader of coronavirus.
An operation to account for the unscrupulous members of the
force is now underway, according to ZRP spokesperson Assistant Commissioner
Paul Nyathi.
“Members of the public should report and give specific,
credible evidence so that action can be taken against these officers,” said
Asst Comm Nyathi.
Currently, Zimbabwe United Passenger Company (Zupco) buses
and commuter omnibuses, including franchise holders, which are the only service
mandated to provide mass public transport, follow strict health protocols on
disinfecting vehicles and social distancing.
But the public transporter’s fleet is overwhelmed by demand
for the service, especially following the recent relaxation of lockdown
measures for formal businesses.
This has created an opportunity for the rogue officers.
The Sunday Mail Society has on several occasions bumped
into some of the officers that are moonlighting either as drivers or conductors
of the banned kombis.
In one of the incidents witnessed by the crew, a ZRP
officer used his work identity card to breach two security checkpoints, while
he was granted easy passage on the third security checkpoint ostensibly because
he was in police uniform.
There are also rogue elements that allow passage to those
without exemption letters for a fee.
For local routes in the capital, Harare, they charge
between $20 and $30, or higher in some cases.
Our crew was last week asked to fork out $10 after
pretending not to have an exemption letter.
But health authorities fear the cost in human lives could
be even more as the virus spreads among commuters.
As most security checkpoints do not operate
round-the-clock, kombis are using the window during peak periods before the
checkpoints are mounted or after they are dismounted to transport desperate
commuters.
Unlike the formal Zupco buses where face masks and hand
sanitising is mandatory, pirate kombis care less about life-saving health
protocols.
Some of the police officers opened up last week.
“Some of our workmates, mostly the senior officers, own
these kombis. I realised they were making extra money through these operations,
hence I decided to offer my services to them since I am a licensed driver,”
revealed one of the officers, who elected to remain anonymous because of the
sensitivity of the matter.
Often, the time and energy is never enough for one to take
up two strenuous shifts in a single day, so how then are they managing?
“I drive this kombi, two or three local trips per day; it
does not pay much but at least you can put something on the table for the
family. Others actually take some days off or go on leave to be on the road,”
he said.
Jimmy, a Chitungwiza-based commuter omnibus operator who
recently joined the Zupco franchise, complained against unfair competition that
is coming from rogue police officers.
“Some of us had to grudgingly take the Zupco franchise deal
as there was no way out.
“Three of my kombis are now operating under Zupco. However,
it is disheartening to note that some of my colleagues and competitors who
happen to be police officers are still operating as private kombis,” he said.
“It is very unfair, these guys consider themselves immune
to the law and they do as they please. Some are even doing inter-city trips. At
some point, I was tempted to do likewise.”
Another kombi driver, Guidance, said under the current
circumstances, where some commuter omnibuses were allowed the carte blanche to
continue simply because there are operated by police officers, it is tempting
to conclude that the ban on private
operators was solely effected to punish them.
“It is very unfair for the police officers to be operating
when we cannot because the ban is for everyone. No one is immune to the law,
but they pass so easily at roadblocks and nothing is done. One wonders though
how the police officers are breaching checkpoints . . .” queried Guidance.
“These officers are employed and yet still proceed to
illegally operate kombis. The law should not be applied selectively. Responsible
authorities need to act on this,” said another Gweru-based private transport
operator.
The local death toll from the virus stood at 23 on Friday
from more than 1 300 infections. Worryingly, the number of local transmissions
had risen to 346 by Thursday. Sunday Mail
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