By Kovedzayi Takawira
HARARE-The government of Zimbabwe this year messed up holiday plans for many diasporas who wished to join their families this festive.
In a televised address on the 30th of November 2021, President Emmerson Mnangagwa said that they are monitoring the Omicron Variant that had been discovered in the neighbouring country South Africa but no one knows what happened to the monitoring process
“Government has decided on a new enhanced measure to strengthen our national response and to protect our nation from impact of a likely fourth wave the new variant omicron will most certainly aggravate,” he said
“With immediate effect, the following measures will now apply; All returning resident and visitors have to undergo PCR testing and will be quarantined at their own cost for days as recommended by WHO, even if they present a negative PCR test result from elsewhere”
After Mnangagwa’s announcement the government as per procedure released statutory instrument 267 of 2021 Public Health (COVID-19 Prevention, Containment, and Treatment) National Lockdown (No. 2) (Amendment) Order, 2021 (No. 37) which stated that
“for section 8 (“Power to close ports of entry and exit”), at every port of entry all returning residents and visitors have to undergo PCR testing (notwithstanding that they present a PCR negative test from elsewhere), and those found to be negative will be quarantined at their own cost for ten days, while those who are found positive will be isolated by the provisions of the principal order; For this paragraph, a returning resident or visitor found to be negative for COVID-19 may self-quarantine at any premises cleared for the purpose in advance by an enforcement officer acting on the instructions of the Ministry for Health”
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services, Nick Mangwana on an interview shared by Zimbabwe Papers Television Network (ZTN) ON 01 December 2021 explaining Statutory Instrument said
“everyone will be tested at the point of arrival if they test positive they go to an isolation center, and if they are negative they are quarantined and at the moment voluntary arrivals will be quarantined at a hotel or lodge we are just sorting security system and identify the ones which are appropriate”
Last week King Kandoro Born Mukudzei Kandoro Majoni jetted in the country from his base in the United States and staged his Prodigal Son show in Bulawayo and Harare, on the 28th foreign-based artist Vusa Mukhaya, Berita, Mbo Mahocs and Msizi kay held a True Homecoming in Bulawayo, South African Musician Big Zulu also performed in the city on a different day but none was sent for mandatory quarantine
A Zimbabwean in the diaspora Joseph Mhute through a microblogging site Twitter accused the Government of sabotaging the voter registering process
“Zimbabwe is under one of the worst dictatorships ever. They aimed to make sure that those in the diaspora do not come and register to vote. That system exceeded its sell-by date before it even ascended to the throne through that coup”
Meanwhile, inmates have been escaping from Quarantine Centers where Safety concerns have been raised Zimbabwe Republic Police is on record of reporting inmates absconding centers
“The ZRP is concerned with cases of inmates who are absconding from Covid-19 Quarantine Centers across the country. From 19-21/11/21, a total of 76 comprising of 69 males and seven females absconded from Beitbridge Quarantine Center. Investigations are underway”
An average of 1000 cases per day has been reported between the 24th to the 27th of December 2021, with 63 deaths recorded in the same period
