Zambezi River turned into sex haven
VICTORIA Falls residents, including married people and schoolchildren have allegedly turned a restricted section of the Zambezi River into the biblical Sodom and Gomorrah where they go for swimming, braai, beer drinking and sex escapades.
Concerned residents accused the Zimbabwe National Parks and Management Authority (Zimparks) rangers of fuelling immorality and marriage break-ups by opening the area to the public.
People pay $2 entrance fee to Zimparks to swim in the crocodile-infested river. The picnic which starts with booze and swimming in the river, a few hundred metres upstream from the VIP entrance to the Rainforest, mostly ends with sex adventures in the wildlife-infested bush, concerned residents have alleged.
The Victoria Falls Combined Residents Association (Vifacora) convened a meeting on Friday following complaints by residents who said pupils were bunking lessons and returning home drunk. Even married women and men are involved as the area has turned into a sex haven. Speaking at the Chinotimba Hall, residents ordered Zimparks to close the area as it is fuelling immorality, defiling the sacred Zambezi River.
Vifacora chairman Mr Morgen “Gazza” Dube said Zimparks should have consulted residents before starting such an activity.
“We don’t know what has changed and wonder if they removed the crocodiles and drained water for them to allow people there. They should have consulted you as residents. We engaged and told them that residents don’t want this project, not because of money but because of immorality and defilement of a sacred river,” he said while opening the meeting.
An elderly woman said some marriages were on the brink of collapse.
“Children are no longer going to school because they have discovered a haven for immorality where they go to swim and abuse drugs and alcohol in the Zambezi River where everyone, including elderly people, will be half naked,” she said.
Residents also complained about pollution of the river and national park.
“Victoria Falls is a heritage site and we can’t have a situation where 200 people spend a day where there are no toilets, they defile the place. We grew up knowing that we were restricted from going near the river or into the bush and picnicking because there are crocodiles and wild animals.
“We don’t know if the animals and crocodiles no longer attack people. We wonder who clears those beer bottles and litter from there. Locals know how sacred Kasambabezi River was but you have defiled it because of your love for money. You are like Judas Iscariot, who pretends to work for people when you are covering up for shady dealings within the rainforest,” a resident told a Zimparks official Mr Mathew Muleya who is also Hwange Rural District Council Ward 19 councillor.
A senior resident Mr Christopher Ndiweni said: “I went there to check and was shocked that everything was happening in front of rangers who said they were guarding people from being attacked by crocodiles.”
Local businessman Mr Bernard Sihwaba Ncube accused the rangers of making money through the immoral activity.
“Go and tell your bosses that residents said stop it, we don’t want that,” he said.
Mr Muleya, however, accused residents of immorality.
“I want to apologise for what has happened as we appreciate that you were supposed to be consulted. We restricted those below 18 from the area but we then discovered what is called ‘lunch hour’ where married men and women would go there with secret lovers in the absence of their spouses. We have caught many there and they will tell funny stories. Husbands leave in the morning going to work and women go to the river with boyfriends for the lunch hour. My appeal is for you people to stop this lunch hour immorality,” he said.
He almost torched a storm when he told residents that those who are not comfortable with the activity should just not go there.
Residents ordered Zimparks to immediately close the area. In 2015 a Mosi-oa-Tunya High School pupil was murdered by two men as she went for a picnic with a boyfriend in the area.