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Zacharia Chifamba (62) from of Mucheke died a suspicious
death as he was about to go to work in the evening and Chikato police were
called to attend to the scene.
TellZim News was informed that the police indicated that
the nature of the death required health officials to attend the scene first as
the police did not have Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
When health officials were called, they are said to have
refused to attend to the scene saying it was the job of the police to attend to
such scenes first.
Normatively, when a person dies unexpectedly outside of a
health institution, the police are called to investigate, and they often take
the body for a post mortem.
The spread of coronavirus has, however, seen government
declaring that all deaths be treated as Covid-19 related until proven
otherwise. This means that such dead bodies have to be tested posthumously for
the virus before burial.
As the police and health officials from the Ministry of
Health bickered on who should attend to the scene first, Chifamba’s body lay on
the ground covered with a blanket until the afternoon of Saturday, August 8.
The body of the late Chifamba, whose place of residence is
a stone throw away from Chikato Police Station, was only collected after the
local branch of the Red Cross Society provided them with PPEs.
Before that, the desperate Chifamba family had called Nyaradzo
Life Assurance to take the body away but they were advised to let police
processes be done first in line with lawful procedure. The family could not
accord the body some dignified care as per culture since the risks involved
were immense.
When TellZim News reached out to Masvingo provincial police
spokesperson Chief Inspector Charity Mazula for comment, she said the police
had responded to the case in reasonable time even though the body spent the
whole night and half the following day unattended.
“The police were quick to respond to the case and we wait
to get the results from the post-mortem to ascertain the cause of death,” said
Mazula.
Chifamba is said to have complained of side pains before
his sudden death.
A Red Cross Society employee who spoke on condition of
anonymity told TellZim News that the body of Chifamba was left unattended for
several hours as the family took precautionary measures against Covid-19.
“The nature of death made everyone suspect that it was
Covid-19 hence the family’s decision not to touch or move Chifamba’s body from
where he collapsed. They just covered it with a blanket and suffered the pain
of waiting.
“We made concerted efforts to engage the police and health
officials but they seemed to have their own quarrels. The police then demanded
PPEs from us for them to attend the scene the following day.
“I think it should be made clear as to whom to call first
when such incidences happen. It was a traumatic experience for the bereaved
family,” said the official.
Masvingo Provincial Medical Director (PMD) Dr Amadeus
Shamu, as has become his attitude when called by the media, did not answer his
phone when TellZim News wanted to get his comment.
In a related matter which occurred recently, a family from
First Street, Chesvingo, had to drive the body of a family member who died in
her sleep to Masvingo Provincial Hospital for a post-mortem after Health
officials whom they had called advised them to take the body to the hospital
themselves. TellZim News
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