Chronicle Editor
MR Lovemore Toma of Bubi district in Matabeleland North province recalls the horror that occurred within the vicinity of his homestead.
Mr Toma said two men attempted to rape a woman at night.
“On May 1, at 8pm while in my house with family, I heard a woman screaming asking me to save her as a man was close to raping her. I opened the door and I saw a man holding a machete chasing after her.”
The would-be victim was on her way to her homestead with a fellow villager. According to Mr Toma, the other woman was stabbed by two men as she also tried to free herself from the attack.
“As the two were dragging her into the bush, another was trying to rape her, but she overpowered him, escaped,” said Mr Toma.
Mr Toma said the attempted rape suspect was later captured by villagers who severely beat him up.
Mr Lovemore Nyathi, one of the people who apprehended the rape suspect added that there was an increase in criminal activities in Bubi.
“It’s true that we are in a serious crisis of violent crimes and we really need help as a community. There are a lot of criminal activities but currently I am involved in a court case after apprehending a suspect, so I am not at liberty to comment much,” he said.
Bubi legislator Hon Sonny Mguni said his constituency was a hot spot of machete gangs because of small-scale mining activities.
“Incidents of violence are always witnessed in many gold mining sites.
“The police are doing their best to maintain law and order to curb those perpetrators of violence. Arrests have been made and records are there for you to prove for yourself. As a local leader, I contributed fuel and my car to the police to make follow-ups. In parliament I advocated for the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Defence, Home Affairs and Security Services and Mining Committee (joint portfolio committees) to conduct Public Hearings in Bubi, the programme is still underway.”
Matabeleland North police spokesperson Inspector Glory Banda recently expressed concern over the spike in machete wars in Inyathi and Siganda areas .
“Machete wars are happening in areas like Inyathi and Siganda under Bubi district and are a cause for concern,” she said, adding that the case of a man who allegedly attempted to rape a woman and was apprehended by villagers was already in court.- — The Citizen Bulletin
Bongani Ndlovu