REDCLIFF: Parents wary of ‘Vending’ Rutendo High School teacher

Parents and guardians with children enrolled at Rutendo High School in Redcliff are up in arms with a school teacher who has reportedly neglected his call of duty to engage in vending, ostensibly to supplement to the meagre allowances the country’s teachers are currently getting.

The teacher, who has been identified as Chiminya, is said to be in the habit of using his vehicle to sell various items to students and also clashing with female vendors whose businesses are now being affected by his “new shop”.

“It is disheartening that Mr Chiminya is now concentrating on vending while the students are in need of his services in the classroom,” said a parent who refused to be named.

“He uses his car to engage in vending and this has negatively impacted on the activities of the old women who are also selling various wares to the students on the perimeter fence of the school premises. We are also receiving continuos reports that he (Chiminya) has been clashing with these female vendors, ana mai vedu who have no other source of income,” the source said.

In an interview with Zwnews, the female vendors operating at the school said they are wary of Chiminya’s activities.

“Chiminya has now converted his car into a shop and he has been threatening us on several occasions. Sometimes, the students are afraid of buying from us as this teacher bullies them. He distracts them from buying from us and we feel hard done by his misdemeanors,” said one of the vendors.

“We have children learning at the school and we pay school fees from the vending activities that we do. But we now find ourselves between a hard rock and the devil as Chiminya is selling his wares inside the premises, thereby affecting our businesses. We once tried to engage him but he has apparently ignored our cries and at one time he openly told us that he was going to fix us,” the vendor said.

At the time of publishing, Chiminya defied calls for an interview with the media.

Zwnews