Tendai Ziso

The government has condemned raising calls for mass action in the country amid the Covid 19 pandemic saying it puts the nation at risk of raising coronavirus infections, a position which comes at a time where talks of holding a mass protest on 31 July are gathering momentum in the country, State of the Nation reports.

The Minister of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services issued a statement yesterday calling on public figures and political players to act responsibly with the safety of Zimbabweans in mind, saying any calls for mass action are an unnecessary stocking of infection risk in the nation.

“Zimbabweans, we are in the midst of an existential threat. Any political posturing is not helpful. We therefore call upon public figures and political players to act responsibly with the safety of Zimbabweans in mind”.

Any call for mass action at this time is an unnecessary stoking of infection risk to the nation. This country cannot afford adventurism in the midst of this threat to our very existence, ” said Mutsvangwa.

Zimbabwe has been in a Covid 19 lockdown since 12 March, a development which worsened the living conditions of the country’s citizens as prices of basic commodities started rising while the local currency lost its buying power.

The lockdown, which led to the closure of the informal sector drove many people into abject poverty as they could no longer work in their areas of trade to make ends meet.

All these problems precipitated political players and the public to call for mass protests to express their displeasure against their living conditions to the government.

But Mutsvangwa described these calls as unnecessary, though she indicated that the Second Republic embraces democratic principles, and is working on reforms to deepen and widen the country’s democratic space.

“We want to emphasize that the Second Republic embraces democratic principles and is the midst of far reaching reforms which deepen and widen the democratic space” she said.

The number of Covid 19 cases continue to raise in the country, with the latest positive cases standing at 885, with 206 recoveries and 9 deaths as of yesterday. This has left the government in a dilemma to choose between opening the country and allow people to work, or continue to impose restrictive measures to prevent people from moving.

Although the country is in the level two lockdown, people are now moving freely to conduct business in order to survive as the government failed to provide social security nets to sustain citizens when they are home.

But Mutsvangwa revealed that a total of 196 397 out of a target of one million people have so far received the allowance off the governments cushioning allowance for members in the informal sector.