We’re in a crisis — Chamisa

OPPOSITION MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa says information on the ground, particularly in rural areas, was pointing to a dire situation in the country, hence the need for government to stop politicking and come up with good strategies to win the COVID-19 battle.

Chamisa yesterday told NewsDay that the COVID-19 situation in the country was getting out of hand, thus the need for a more serious approach to deal with the pandemic instead of politicking at a time when the deadly disease has killed over 2 600 people in Zimbabwe.

“It can’t be business as usual. It is business unusual,” Chamisa said. “Take every place as a potential hotspot and every gathering as a super spreader.

“There must be a very clear programme of action, and I get disturbed with the situation in hospitals. There are no oxygen facilities in many of them and the poor are exposed.”

He added: “It is expensive to get admitted in a hospital these days and how many people can afford it? The situation is dire, especially in rural areas. Families are affected and it is a real emergency, a real disaster that requires self-leadership.

“This thing of seeking to weaponise COVID-19 is an act of desperation. You can’t seek to profit from a dire situation like this that is threatening to wipe out a whole nation, a generation.”

The MDC Alliance leader said the situation at public hospitals was dire, hence the need to improve the health delivery system in the country.

“It’s only in a banana republic where there is an attempt to make COVID-19 a victory,” Chamisa said.

He said authorities should address the public transport disaster as thousands of Zimbabweans continued to be exposed in queues and in Zupco buses that were allowed to operate, but are overwhelmed due to high demand.

“This is a proper case of emergency and the nation must now be in a crisis mode. We can’t be in a lackadaisical mode, and we have to change the way we do things,” he said.

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