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Midlands Bureau
A NATIONAL Aids Council breakfast meeting in Gweru flopped yesterday as invited guests failed to turn up after misreading the event as an April Fools’ Day prank.
Only about 25 invited guests out of an expected 60 turned up for the business meeting for managers at the Village Lodge.
Midlands Minister of State for Provincial Affairs, Cde Jason Machaya who was supposed to be the guest of honour, jokingly said the poor turnout could be a case of misreading the event as an April Fool’s Day prank.
“I almost took it that way as well. It won’t surprise me if most of the invited guests concluded that the meeting is an April Fool’s Day joke. Maybe we should just call it off and postpone the meeting to a more convenient date,” he said to laughter from the guests.
The meeting which was supposed to start at 7AM was meant to sensitise the business community on HIV and Aids programmes as well as create awareness among workers.
NAC’s Provincial HIV and Aids Coordinator, Mambewu Shumba said the meeting had been postponed to April 15 at the same venue.
“NAC is engaging big companies like Unki, Mimosa, Zimasco, Zisco and Murowa to establish on site clinics that offer ART on a monthly basis. They should hold awareness campaigns within their companies where they educate workers on health issues.
“The companies should have an HIV focal person who manages HIV programmes at work. We wish to have a replica programme of what we get in the community at the workplace,” said Shumba.
He said NAC was moving from sector to sector creating awareness among organisations and their employees.
Online Reporter