Chronicle Editor
Robin Muchetu, Senior Reporter
CHIEF Sikhobokhobo of Nkayi District in Matabeleland North Province has called for the restoration of morals within communities and to ensure that corruption is nipped in the bud when dealing with cases of injustice.
Speaking in a wide-ranging interview with Sunday News on Wednesday last week, Chief Sikhobokhobo revealed that cases of Gender-Based Violence (GBV) and sexual abuse were being swept under the carpet after parties solved issues outside the justice system.
“I call on the media to work with traditional leaders so as to get issues happening on the ground, especially concerning women and children. There are issues of children that are falling pregnant and it disturbs me that people are doing such things.
“We are calling on the police to also work with us and deal with such matters, it is sad that sometimes issues are swept under the carpet. At the end of the day, it is me and the victims who have to face each other, the assumption will be that I did not do enough to have the issue prosecuted and they lose trust in the traditional leadership system,” he lamented.
The chief said he recently encountered a villager who was stabbed with an arrow and he had to take them to the hospital but said nothing was done to the perpetrator who is still walking scot-free in the village.
“Such issues are a problem as failure to get people arrested leads to many more crimes being left unsolved and communities taking the law into their hands on the perpetrators, thus further exacerbating the problem.”
He said cases must be dealt with as soon as they happen and they must go through the courts so that justice is served and victims are safe from their abusers.
He said he was not going to sit and watch children being sexually abused.
Chief Sikhobokhobo also bemoaned the prevalence of child marriages in the district, saying there was a need for society to work together towards tackling the practice as it has ruined the future of many children.
“Child marriages are a cancer, we need, as traditional leaders, to work with the police to ensure these are nipped in the bud. When you find a pregnant child, sure enough in many cases the perpetrator comes to marry the child. But what of the child and the innocence that will have been ripped off them?
“Since we had Covid-19, this phenomenon has not stopped; they are still falling pregnant. This affects girls so much and if I as a Chief do not act on these issues, I will be found in the wrong for not ensuring this practice stops,” he said.
He said a majority of the pregnant girls are also abandoned by their parents leaving them under the care of grandmothers, who barely have any resources to cater for the children and their babies.
“This leads to a chain of problems and some of the abused children then leave a heavy burden on grandparents who will be taking care of them with little resources. But I will do my best to look out for these children and ensure justice is served and children do not have early pregnancies,” he added.
Turning to issues of food security, Chief Sikhobokhobo said villagers are facing hunger and need alternative food sources as the rainy season has delayed commencement adding that he already has people who have come for aid at his homestead.
He revealed that reserves, under the Isiphala seNkosi/Zunde raMambo had since run dry.
“Even other districts like Lupane, are affected, for others it has actually been dry from last year and they have nowhere to run to, to ask for grain, and as it is we are a little late already to start dealing with drought.
“We should have planned around June of this year to start assisting people and now I have nothing for the people. Some of the elderly who have come to ask for food are not even able to work in the fields, they have children who migrated to South Africa and are not assisting them with food,” he said.
The chief said he has informed the District Development Coordinator of the dire situation in Nkayi District, noting that food aid from donors that complement Government interventions was also not reaching all areas.
“Schools are supposed to open soon, but we will be forced to close them down, no teacher can teach a hungry child, they will not concentrate and they will certainly faint. We need to act as quickly as possible, I do not want to lose children to hunger in the community,” added Chief Sikhobokhobo. — @NyembeziMu
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