BY PRESTIGE MUNTANGA
SUNGURA Masters Dance Crew has appealed to the government to lift the ban on night clubs which have remained closed as part of the fart of measures to curb the spread of COVID- 19.
Leader of the dance group Masotha Nzou told NewsDay Life & Style that the government should consider that artists are also bread winners who have families to feed.
While other sectors have been opened, bars and nightclubs are still closed as physical gatherings for live concerts remain banned, throwing most artistes, who earn a living from live performances, into abject poverty.
“Most of our members are breadwinners, so we rely mostly on night clubs, road shows, beer halls and entertainment as a whole, that is where we get income. So we are appealing to the government to open the sector,” he said.
“Some of us have children attending school and we need to pay school fees, buy stationary, uniforms and pay for transport. How will we do those without incomes? Some other sectors are now operating, so the big question is why us?”
Nzou said many artists will be homeless because they are failing to pay rentals in time and some landlords are not open to negotiations.
“The other thing is that we are tenants so paying rent is one of our major problems. We are in a deep mess,” he said.
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A club owner who requested not to be named shared the same sentiments with Nzou expressing disappointment over how the government is treating the arts sector.
“The night club is the only source of my income and I have a family, friends and workers who depend on me. A lot of workers lost their jobs and they keep on asking when they will be back,” she said.
“We don’t expect this from our government, other sectors are operating. I believe we should also be allowed. We will follow the COVID- 19 regulations, keep social distancing and sanitize. I am sure that most of our clients have been vaccinated, so what is stopping the government from resuming our duties.”
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