Zimbabwe Roundup: Floods, SADC chairmanship, arrest of musician, blood shortage
New Year Deaths
Two women lost their lives during New Year’s Day celebrations in Tafara in Zimbabwe’s capital, Harare. Initial police reports indicate that the incident happened while nearly 2000 people were celebrating on New Year’s Eve with crowds, blocked roads leading to Kamunhu Shopping Center and the Tafara suburb, and haphazardly parked cars. Investigations are still ongoing to ascertain the details of the incident, according to The Herald.
President to chair SADC
Zimbabwe is set to take over the Southern African Development Community (SADC) chairmanship to sit among major events of 2024 for the country. Among other things is the by-elections set for February 3, after tensions in the past led to a recall of some legislators by the Citizens Coalition for Change. According to The Zimbabwe Mail, President Emmerson Mnangagwa is expected to take over as head of the SADC during the summit that will be hosted in the country in August 2024.
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Musician arrested
Zimbabwe Dancehall artiste, Energy Chizanga, popularly known as Freeman has been invited by police in Harare for interrogation over his alleged association with suspected armed robbers. According to News Day media, the musician has been linked to criminals in the past. Pictures of the celebrity were captured in December 2023, in the company of suspected armed robbers and circulated on social media. He was also captured in 2021 in a pose with another armed robber Charles Chirara who was later killed.
Floods affect homes
The Zimbabwean government is set to provide accommodation for flood victims in Budiriro in the southwestern part of Harare. The newly constructed flats in Dzivarasekwa Extension were constructed by the government after several homes in the area were destroyed by floods after heavy rains in December 2023. Fifty-nine homes in all were affected by the flash flooding. Twenty-seven families will be moved into the flats once the documentation is completed, according to The Herald.
Blood shortage
The National Blood Services of Zimbabwe (NBSZ) has called on eligible citizens to donate blood to save lives. According to the media outlet Chronicle, there is a shortage of blood supply for people of Blood group O. Lucy Marowa, Chief Executive Officer of the NBSZ says supplies that were available during the festive season are currently out of stock and critically low. Four branches, Bulawayo, Masvingo, and Mutare, Harare have been hardly hit, the report further said.
