GOVERNMENT bureaucracy almost led to a donation to flood victims by MDC-T being rejected, leaving the party’s vice-president Thokozani Khupe seething with anger.
By NQOBANI NDLOVU
Khupe visited flood victims currently sheltered at Sipepa Clinic, accompanied by lawmakers including Health Portfolio Committee chairperson Ruth Labode and Nomvula Mguni, to donate 150 blankets, 400kg of mealie meal, 200kg of chunks, three cartons of cooking oil and salt.
She also visited Banyana village, where the floods destroyed several homes, after which she called on the government to “urgently attend to the situation”.
“When we arrived at Sipepa Clinic, it took us more than one hour to donate our food and other necessities. We were told to go through the district administrator’s office or the Resident minister. We almost came back with our donation.
“The sad reality is they are politicising a humanitarian situation. People must be above politics when dealing with such issues,” Khupe said.
“The situation is dire and urgent attention is required to restore the lives of the affected. Government must learn from previous experiences. We had a similar problem in 2001 and this time around the government was supposed to be more than ready to deal with the situation.”
Over 800 families are temporarily sheltered at Sipepa, where they sleep in tents after Gwayi River burst its banks and destroyed their homes.
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Tsholotsho bore the brunt of the cyclone-induced floods that have so far claimed over 200 lives and destroyed various infrastructure.
Government has said it has found land to resettle the flood victims, while the Tsholotsho District Civil Protection Unit (CPU) committee has established a trust fund to allow well-wishers to assist the victims with food, blankets and other necessities.
Tsholotsho North MP Jonathan Moyo (Zanu PF) used his microblogging Twitter account to thank Khupe for the donation. “Thank you Honourable Thokozani Khupe for your donation!” Moyo wrote on Saturday.
