Council cops bash a�?ring leadera�� vendor

Vuyelwa Sibindi . . .
A Bulawayo man was left in need of physiotherapy after he was heavily thrashed by Bulawayo City Council (BCC) officers for allegedly inciting vendors to puncture tyres of council vehicles.

Lawrence Madziva is now seeking justice for the attack.

a�?There had been a string of events in Makokoba involving vendors puncturing municipal cars as a way of getting revenge. As you know that these officers have been taking away peoplea��s wares and their actions were now angering the vendors,a�? said Madziva.

B-Metro gathered that before the incident a man approached Madziva saying the vendors now wanted to assault the officers as it seemed that the tyre punctures did not deter them.

a�?A friend who is a vendor told me they had his maputi (corn snacks) and so they (people) wanted to launch an attack on these officers. I, in turn, advised him that attacking municipal officers would be a bad move. I gave him $4 to go and purchase more of his stock and he went away,a�? he added.

On the day of the attack, according to Madziva, he was trying to tell the vendors to remain calm.

a�?I was trying calm down the vendors along 6th Avenue Extension, but when they saw the municipal cars they all fled leaving me alone. About 10 officers took turns to beat me up as they had cuffed my feet and hands to make sure I dona��t escape, as you can see I have scars on my hands because of the cuffs. The attack has led me to seek physiotherapy and I hope that justice will prevail as I am taking the matter to court,a�? said Madziva.

The local authoritya��s public relations officer Bongiwe Ngwenya said she had not received a report on the matter.

a�?I am yet to confirm with the transport department on the issue of the damage done to the cars and whether or not municipal officers have been dragged to court,a�? said Ngwenya.