Government orders workers back to work

Leroy Dzenga, Harare Bureau
Government yesterday ordered its workers to return to work and expects all its departments to be fully functional today.

Civil servants and Zimbabweans at large have been failing to report for work since Monday owing to violent protests instigated by the MDC Alliance and its allies, which saw four people being killed, property worth thousands of dollars destroyed and roads barricaded by the hooligans.

They also beat up people intending to go to work, forcing them to join their illegal protests.

In a statement, Public Service Commission Chairman Dr Vincent Hungwe said the civil service was expected to be fully functional today.

“Government wishes to appreciate the commitment shown by civil servants who have continued to report for duty despite the obstacles they encountered during the past few days,” he said.

“The Government is gratified by the improvement in attendance by civil servants at their work stations.”

Schools and other public service departments were urged to commence work punctually.

“All Government work places, including schools, are required to be fully functional tomorrow 17 January 2019 (today), with all personnel reporting for duty by the prescribed times,” said Dr Hungwe.

Government said it was providing buses after private transport operators withdrew services.

“Public Service Commission buses, which transported personnel to work this morning (yesterday) and will ply their normal routes at the end of the workday, will ferry civil servants to and from work at the designated pick-up and drop-off points at the usual times,” said Dr Hungwe.