Police in Bulawayo have urged motorists to desist from paying bribes to police officers manning roadblocks during the festive season.
This was said by Superintendent Crime Bulawayo West District, Enock Chishiri, while addressing journalists and residents at the Bulawayo Media Center on Thursday during a meeting hosted by the Zimbabwe Union of Journalists.
“We have mounted several roadblocks around the city to ensure that the vehicles moving on the road are roadworthy and that motorists adhere to road rules,” he said.
“We urge motorists to desist from offering bribes to police officers on duty. We are curbing corruption and at the same time trying to keep everyone safe. People must not be complacent to committing crimes. There have been reports that when a vehicle is overloaded, passengers are asked to lie down or hide somehow so that they are not seen. Such conduct is dangerous because if anything goes wrong, a lot of people will be hurt.”
Acting Bulawayo Provincial Spokesperson, Assistant Inspector Nomalanga Msebele echoed Chishiri’s sentiments, highlighting the increased police presence throughout the festive period.
“The police will be having 24-hour roadblocks around the city to enforce compliance. We will be impounding all vehicles that are not roadworthy. There are a lot of Mshikashika vehicles that pirate at this time of the year. So as means of keeping people safe, we are having these roadblocks, from December 15 to January 15. As for overloaded buses, we shall be making passengers disembark and we take them back to where they would have come from,” she said.
“We also urge motorists to exercise extreme caution when on the road. We will be having increased traffic because of people coming in to visit from other places. Some will be over excited and will be over speeding, going through red traffic lights and ignoring road signs.”
