Mushika-shika: Chitungwiza bells the cat While not perfect, Chitungwiza Municipality has managed to tame the mushika-shika menace
While not perfect, Chitungwiza Municipality has managed to tame the mushika-shika menace

While not perfect, Chitungwiza Municipality has managed to tame the mushika-shika menace

Tanyaradzwa Jumo and Simbarashe Msaki
THE story of Chitungwiza can be likened to the “what good can come out of Nazareth?” narrative. The town is infamous for poor service delivery that has exposed residents to preventable and curable diseases.

Popular as the home of famous spirit medium Sekuru Chaminuka, the town has been overshadowed by corruption and other social ills. Land barons salivate whenever they see desperate home-seekers.

They open any space or wetland. Council’s head office has been mockingly renamed to “PaChiadzwa” where one gets quick buck as if they are digging for gems in Chiadzwa.

The organised corruption syndicates are run by smartly-dressed people who roam the vicinity of council offices as agents of land barons and other senior officials. But, these are not the only stories Chitungwiza is known for.

Good stories have been ignored, while people turn a blind eye to the good that the town council has done. While other councils are grappling with the mushika-shika (pirate taxis) menace, Chitungwiza has managed to engage the illegal operators.

Acting public relations manager Mr Aaron Mhonyera said the rate of mushika-shika and obstruction offences have dropped from approximately 80 percent to 45 percent during the day as their officers start duty at 6am and knock off at 6pm. “Council started enforcing traffic by-laws two years back after it contracted Clyna Trading, a private company which offers tow away services because council does not own tow vehicles.

“Given the option the council would opt for buses to ply the Chitungwiza route as commuter omnibuses are sometimes not amenable but working with what is on the ground, council will not rest till it brings the city to its former glorious standards,” said Mhonyera.

Speaking on the same issue, Clyna Trading managing director, Clyde Makusha, said his company signed a five-year contract with council two years ago under the Built, Operate and Transfer (B.O.T) arrangement and they have bought three tow vehicles, software, gadgets and resurfaced terminals at St Mary’s and Makoni, as well as erecting road signs.

“Fines are gazetted by the city council and from the monthly revenue collected, we split with council to recover our investment. “For our employees, when our contract with council expires after five years, they will become council employees.

“On the professional side, we give our employees in-house training which includes policing and public relations before they commence work and we do sell as well as enforcing parking discs and our employees have uniforms contrary to some reports that they always work in civilian attire,” said Makusha.

Driving in Chitungwiza is a nightmare and keeping left has become a relic as motorists drive in a modern swerving style avoiding potholes.

“The roads in Chitungwiza are in a deplorable state, as much as we appreciate the efforts being made by the city fathers in eradicating mushika-shika there is need for exigency in terms of road maintenance and also sheds must be erected at bus stops because people will end up using any place where there is a shade as a bus stop tempting our drivers to pick them at undesignated places especially during the rainy season and hot sunny days”, said Gevas Chikuvire, an omnibus operator.

“I appreciate the superb job being done by the city council and nowadays no cat and mouse games are being evidenced between the council and kombis and this shows maturity and compliance by drivers and operators but the roads must be maintained and potholes must be patched with tarmac not to fill them with gravel as this takes us centuries back,” said Ms Talent Mujere.

Chitungwiza’s shopping centres have poor lighting which commercial sex workers capitalise on. Public facilities have become dysfunctional.

Sewer bursts are a normal phenomenon. “Council has done a good job and I am elated that the roads are now passable especially during the day but I am against the idea of engaging private companies in enforcing the council by-laws, this honourable duty must be reserved for trained council officers, not to give that responsibility to civilians and the council must benefit all the revenue from traffic fines than to enrich an individual while the council’s financial status is in comatose struggling to pay employees’ salaries, repairing sewer bursts, and public toilets and erecting lighting facilities”, said Elvis Chikumbo, a Chitungwiza resident.

Despite having a myriad of negative things, the municipality has succeeded where others have failed, that is regularising mushika-shika. Reducing mushika-shika has remained chimerical to other cities who have joined hands with the national police to try and curb the menace caused by commuter omnibuses but efforts are not bearing fruit and Chitungwiza Municipality has solely managed it, proving the city’s convergent thinkers.

Cooperation by motorists, coupled with a deterrent fine of $100 for any obstruction offence, has helped in reducing mushika-shika in Chitungwiza and most intersections used as designated loading areas are passable as omnibus drivers are complying with the council’s directive to completely pull off the road when picking and dropping passengers.

“Hatisi mapato anopikisa kanzuru isu blaz, tinotoda kuti titevedzere mutemo asi kunze kweroad kwavanoda kuti timire kune makomba ekuti nyangwe munhu wetsoka chaiye haakwanise kukufamba and fine yavo yakanyanya nekuti mazuvano pazuva tiri kuto casher $50-$60” (We are not opposing forces, we want to abide by the laws but pulling off the road is difficult because of ditches which are by road sides, even a pedestrian cannot navigate them. Their fines are far beyond reach considering that we are working for $50-$60 a day), said Darlington Matina, an omnibus conductor.

Some transport operators challenged the council to clear the bus termini which are being used as night car parks, illegal garages and to remove other abandoned vehicles to eradicate obstruction cases in the city.

In response, council acknowledges and promised, without a specific time frame, that soon the bus termini will be cleared as council is planning to build a secure compound which can accommodate more vehicles.

Council, in its quest to find a remedy for mushika-shika and to encourage kombis to use legal ranks, sell rank discs at $17 per term. Mr Innocent Kambwili, a kombi operator, said he is content with the charge considering the current economic challenges.

Some obdurate drivers brag they can meet their daily targets while operating on illegal ranks as compared to designated areas and there is no way they can be arrested.

With the seriousness of the council in executing this initiative, the bragging will be a thing of the past. Chitungwiza Municipality has managed to curb mushika-shika using three tow vehicles in one of the country’s busiest towns whose car population surpasses an approximated 4 000 daily traffic flow.

With the necessary resources, offences of road obstruction will be eradicated and residents believe council has become a biblical Saul, who later became Paul.

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