dyton mupawaenda
Ivan Zhakata and Nokuthula Dube-Check Point Desk
MACHIPISA Bus Terminus in Highfield, Harare, has become an underground market where smuggled goods are sold.
An undercover investigation revealed how cross-border buses are now arteries through which contraband — from premium whiskey to canned beans — flow unchecked into the capital.
Every evening, especially after sunset, the rank comes alive — not with passengers, but with heavy duffel bags and taped cardboard boxes being offloaded swiftly and discreetly.
Behind the faded walls and chaotic scenes, a secretive economy thrives.
“We get everything from South Africa — Jameson whiskey, Monster and Dragon energy drinks, baked beans, you name it,” said a vendor, who declined to be identified.
“The buses offload at night and we buy the goods straight off the buses.”
The cross-border buses, which used to park at Roadport in Harare’s central business district, now prefer Machipisa bus rank, where lax enforcement offers a safer smuggling corridor.
Ironically, Machipisa Police Station is just a stone’s throw from the rank where the illicit activities are taking place.
Goods are ferried in secret compartments, hidden under seat covers and sometimes even stashed inside modified fuel tanks.
“They (drivers) have mastered the routes and the system,” said a former cross-border bus conductor who quit the trade after a near arrest.
“At the border, a few dollars can make problems disappear. Once we are past Beitbridge, it becomes easy. We call ahead, and within minutes of parking at Machipisa, the goods are gone.”
A closer inspection of the goods revealed an astonishing variety: whiskey bottles wrapped in blankets, crates of imported energy drinks stacked behind false panels and cartons of groceries typically found in South African supermarkets.
Vendors said the smuggled products are the backbone of their businesses.
“Buying from these buses is cheaper than any wholesaler,” said Mrs Chieza, who sells drinks and snacks along High Glen Road.
“We do not ask questions. If the price is good, we take it.”
Authorities, however, seem largely absent. Police patrols are rare, and when officers do appear, vendors disappear into alleyways — only to re-emerge minutes later, business as usual.
Council spokesperson Mr Stanley Gama expressed ignorance over the issue.
“As City of Harare, our jurisdiction is within city by-laws. If the bus drivers flout the by-laws, then we take action,” he said.
Zimbabwe Revenue Authority spokesman Mr Francis Chimanda said: “There is a national task force set up by the Government to enforce compliance which includes interceptions, spot checks, highway roadblocks, post clearance audits, seizure of goods imported in violation of the law and recovery of duties unpaid.
“This targets all traders and transporters of imported goods. Intelligence shared by the public is also used as part of the operations.”
The Zimbabwe Republic Police has in the past reiterated its commitment to fighting smuggling of illegal goods of all kinds.
National police spokesman Commissioner Paul Nyathi last night said the police will continue to fight smuggling.
He said there is an anti-smuggling taskforce involving many Government arms, including the police, which is operating across the country to snuff out smugglers.
Comm Nyathi encouraged the public to provide information on smuggling to the police so that the criminals are brought to book.
The anti-smuggling task force is being spearheaded by the Ministry of Industry and Commerce through its Taskforce on Business Malpractices, which was mandated to bring sanity in the economy and allow growth.
A vendor at the rank said: “It is an open secret that there is a lot of smuggling here, but catching the smugglers is difficult. By the time authorities react, everything would have already been distributed across Harare.”
Smuggling is not just undermining legitimate trade; it is also raising serious concerns about public safety.
Without formal inspection, the quality of consumables — especially perishables like snacks and canned foods — is questionable.
As dusk falls at Machipisa, another cross-border bus weaves its way into the rank, engine rumbles.
Tired faces watch from the shadows.
Deals are whispered.
Money changes hands. And the smuggling machine rolls on, hidden in plain sight.
During investigations, this news crew witnessed three bus operators (names protected) offloading some of the contraband. When confronted about this, the drivers became hostile and almost violent.
In February, huge quantities of counterfeit, sub-standard and underweight products were destroyed at the Geo Pomona Waste Management site in Harare as part of an ongoing crackdown by the Anti-Smuggling Taskforce.
The destruction of the goods sought to protect consumers from potentially harmful products.
Speaking during the event, Consumer Protection Commission (CPC) director Mr Kudakwashe Mudereri said they were concerned about the influx of illegal and counterfeit goods on the informal market.
Harare Metropolitan Province’s Anti-Smuggling Taskforce coordinator, Mr Tawedzera Muwani said that confiscated goods will not be sold or used.
“Smuggled and illegal goods, including those that are substandard, will be destroyed. We do not take them home, and we do not allow them to re-enter the market.”
He acknowledged the collaborative effort among various Government entities in combating smuggling and counterfeit trade.
“We extend our gratitude to all the Government entities we have worked with, including the City of Harare, the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, CPC and ZRP,” he said.
Online Reporter