Mnangagwa to review lockdown restrictions
Addressing Zanu PF Politburo members at the party’s headquarters on Friday, President Emmerson Mnangagwa announced that the government will review the national lockdown restrictions following a spike in local transmissions.
Mnangagwa said he is reviewing the coronavirus lockdown restrictions following a spike in local transmissions. Critics say Mnangagwa wants a hard lockdown to prevent opposition protests.
The announcement by Mnangagwa coincides with news that members of the opposition are planning a protest on 31 July.
Zanu PF commissar Victor Matemadanda said those bankrolling the demonstration want to infect people with the novel coronavirus Covid-19. He said that Westerners have smuggled canisters full of coronavirus into Zimbabwe which they will deploy on July 31.
He further urged Zimbabweans not to participate in the protest saying it is for their own health.
Savanna News reported yesterday that Zimbabwe’s most populous cities Harare, Bulawayo and Chitungwiza will go into full scale lockdown before 31 July.
“The public demonstration will not see the light of the day. The police and the army has the situation under control. There is not much that needs to be done besides the current lockdown measures which will be scaled up. Movement between surburbs will also be restricted,” said source in the security sector.
Another source said the government is still discussing the possibility of jamming or switching off the internet as an alternative if the planned scaling up of the lockdown fails.
Information secretary of the government Nick Mangwana had hinted about the possibility of a strict lockdown for the two major cities.
Mangwana said, “Harare has the vast majority of Covid19 cases. Yesterday Bulawayo recorded 30 of the 53 positive cases. If there is any scaling up of containment measures, a more surgical approach is better. It means full scale lockdown should only apply to Harare and Bulawayo.”
