By Lloyd Takawira
Traveling through the streets of Mbare is now a menace as youths bitten by the covid-19 pandemic have now resorted to setting up illegal “tollgates” forcing drivers avoiding police roadblocks to pay for passage.
Speaking to Bustop TV news some motorists said they had been harassed by the youths in Mbare who go on to demand money from them so they pass through.
For one Mbare National resident, Nathan Mumbire on your way to and from work you must put some money aside for the boys who will be claiming to be repairing roads.
“Every day to and from work you need have dollars for the boys. They say, they are maintaining roads. You give them ZWL$50 . For me l pass through 3 of these illegal boom gates.”
Mumbire attributed all these to the biting effects of the covid-19 pandemic.
“It’s all poverty that is driving them to do this. Some of them were touts who lost their jobs when the government banned combis from operating”.
Speaking to Bustop TV, Byron a tout who leads one of the illegal boom gate said his action were justified.
“As you can see most of these cars are kombis who will be evading police so we shield them here. plus plying this route they will be damaging our roads as they run away from the police so we charge them for using our roads,” he said.
In a statement this week the Harare City Council (HCC) issued a statement warning youths from setting up illegal boom gates.
However, the call seems to have fallen on deaf ears as the determined youths seek to capitalize on the situation. It seems authorities have failed in providing direction as the youths are now in charge of controlling the movement of transport. They are even claiming to be maintaining roads whiles the government and the local authorities stand akimbo.
