Shooting ourselves in the foot

WHAT we witnessed across the country last week is not representative of Zimbabwean societal values.

We are a peace loving nation which has not been known to react to situations in a violent manner. To my understanding, there was a call for a stay-away but surprisingly hooligans took to the streets and started blocking roads and violently assaulting people who were on their way to work.

Looting sprees and destruction of property was the order of the day before the timely intervention of security forces.

Those ‘stupids’ even went to the extent of shutting down schools, as if innocent young children were the ones to solve their grievances.

If the army and police had not come to the rescue, these protestors or rather criminals would have burnt the whole country to the ground.

President Mnangagwa has been preaching about the democratic space that he has given us but when other members of society start abusing that space, maybe there needs to deny that democratic space until some elements know how to use it.

I hope justice will take its course and everyone who was involved in the chaos is put behind bars because we cannot live with such elements in our communities. Imagine the revenue that businesses have lost during the past week because of this forced stay away. How is this a solution in any way? Instead of working towards rebuilding the economy, these individuals go on to do the opposite.

By halting businesses and destroying property, we are actually making the situation worse.

Mudzimu Mukuru.