Chronicle Editor
Patrick Chitumba, Midlands Bureau Chief
AS a child, Pepukayi Muzenda, was interested in doing activities and work that are normally associated with boys.
When girls of her age where busy hand knitting, playing with dolls, “cooking and baking” with mud as mealie-meal and tins as pots, she would be by her father’s side learning how to yoke cattle for draught power before taking them to the fields.
Growing up in the communal area of Sanyati, Ms Muzenda, now 37, had male friends as she would relate better with them, compared to fellow girls.
After passing two O-level subjects; Fashion and Fabrics and Agriculture, she moved to Gweru where she looked for employment as a house maid.
“I grew up liking to do what boys would do like playing with toys made with wires and would follow my father to the fields.
I never really liked playing with girls as I thought all they did was gossip.
After attaining two O-levels I thought all hope was lost since I was coming from a poor background.
My parents struggled to look after me and my siblings,” she said in an interview yesterday.
Ms Muzenda — a mother of four said in 2010, she worked as a maid and realised that her salary was not enough to send to her parent’s back home.
She said in 2011, she was engaged by Gweru City Council (GCC) as a casual worker and in 2012, got married.
“As a casual worker I was attached to the engineering department and we would clear storm drains.
I then had a child.
I realised that I was not going to be able to look after my parents with my meagre casual worker’s salary and the family I was starting,” said Ms Muzenda.
She said she started driving lessons and before she knew it, she was a holder of a class 2 drivers licence in 2013.
Ms Muzenda said she was then employed as a truck driver at GCC but she was still not satisfied with her salary.
“I was very ambitious because of the love I have for my parents.
Remember I felt obliged to look after them.
I remember my father visited me and I went to pick him up using a council truck.
He was shocked when he realised that I was the truck driver and not a passenger.
He cried and wished he had supported me when I was doing those boys and man tasks at our homestead,” she said.
A year later, Ms Muzenda said she got to know that the only grader operator at GCC was due for retirement and saw an opportunity to rise further in her career.
She said she saw an advert of a company in Harare that was training grader operators.
“So in 2014 I had the opportunity to go and train as a grader operator.
The opportunity came at a time when I was actually breastfeeding.
My son Ison was three months old.
But I told myself that I was not going to let the opportunity go.
I told my husband that I was going to Harare and we engaged a maid.
It was challenging of course but I soldiered on,” said Ms Muzenda.
After three months, she said she was back at GCC as a qualified grader operator.
“Operating a grader is not as difficult as some women think.
It’s easy because the machines these days use the hydraulic system.
So there isn’t much manual work but rather we use the brain,” she said.
Ms Muzenda said life started changing or improving for her once she started operating the GCC grader.
She said even at home, her husband started consulting her on family matters.
“With my first salary as a grader operator, I took my husband shopping and he was shocked when we bought the biggest bed that was in that furniture shop and we still remained with a lot of money.
He then said we could start saving for a stand and other things.
I was no longer that house girl or the casual worker.
From home and in society, people started respecting me,” said Ms Muzenda.
She said with recognition or respect she was now getting from her husband and planning together unlike before, they managed to acquire a stand and constructed a nine-roomed house and bought a vehicle among other achievements.
“My life is all about sacrifices, it’s about hope for a better life and commitment.
I have four children and the first born Brighton (19) is at the School of Mines, Walton (11) and Ison (7) are in Grade 6 and 2 respectively at Sarah Bata Primary school in Gweru and the last born Icon (4) is in crèche,” said Ms Muzenda.
She said when off duty from GCC she is engaged by private companies where she charges a minimum of US$10 per hour.
“With my experience I am now sought-after.
Companies come after me and at times I refuse just to be with my family.
It is my wish to have women taking up opportunities, doing what pleases their hearts professionally so that no one looks down upon them.
I was looked down upon.
People frowned at me as a house girl and as a casual worker but I told myself that I needed to grow professionally and I persevered.
The road is not easy but my advice to the girl child, to the woman out there is please persevere, be committed to the desires of your heart, work hard and that way we will develop our homes, families, community and country at large,” said Ms Muzenda.
Her sister, Mrs Lilian Chirenda said Ms Muzenda was a different and difficult child growing up.
“She had a different character from girls of her age.
This job she is doing suits her very well,” she said.
GCC public relations officer, Ms Vimbai Chingwaramusee said the local authority gives equal opportunities to women to take up leadership and other roles that were once labelled as masculine roles.
“We encourage qualified women to apply for job opportunities, be it managerial or at director level.
As a local authority our employment regulations are not gender biased.
“Women must be given equal opportunities in employment irrespective of gender.
We encourage women to take up the so-called male jobs.
We also encourage them to take up managerial posts as we are confident that they can play a part in ensuring Gweru becomes a sustainable prosperous city of choice by 2030,” she said.
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