Scores of Harare commuters stranded as police intensify blitz on private Kombis

Scores of commuters in Harare were left stranded this Monday morning after the Zimbabwe Republic Police intensified its blitz on private minibuses.

The state-run Zimbabwe United Passenger Company (ZUPCO), which has the legalized monopoly, is failing to service all routes.

Meanwhile, even those Kombis under the ZUPCO franchise are failing to cope with the demand.

On Friday, many commuters in Bulawayo were also left stranded owing to the same operation by ZRP.

Apparently, this led to some disruption of services as private Kombis blocked ZUPCO buses in sabotage.

The police had to be deployed to restore order.

When the country moved into lockdown last year in the effort to curb the spread of Covid 19, only ZUPCO buses were allowed to operate.

Private omnibuses wishing to remain in operation were ordered to join the ZUPCO franchise.

However, some private operators complained saying they should not be forced to join ZUPCO their competitor, amid rampant corruption in the process of joining the franchise.

Zwnews