Chiredzi residents rely on SA telecoms, radio transmission
SAMUEL NJINGA RECENTLY IN CHIREDZI
People in Chiredzi South district, Masvingo province, do not have mobile networks and radio transmission and are now relying on South Africa’s Vodacom and radio and television networks.
Headman Gezani, born Ben Chauke, said the problem of connectivity has been there since independence.
“We don’t have a network for our mobiles. If one is to make effective communication one has to make use of Vodacom. As if this is not enough to hurt us, we don`t have transmission for our radios and televisions. We rely on South African transmission and network. We seem to be living in South Africa yet we are indigenous citizens of this country,” Gezani said.
“Development is no longer feasible here, it is hard to communicate with people and coordinate them in an area with barren communication technology and dilapidated roads like Chiredzi South. Communication is just poor, hence no meaningful development. We are equally concerned about poor transmission that has befallen our region. We do not know Zimbabwean radios and televisions thereby making it difficult to cope with our own Zimbabwean situation.”
Villagers who spoke to Business Times showed concern over network challenges with some of them purporting that they had lost relatives due to poor communication.
“We are in desperate need of government help. We would receive communication concerning the sickness of our parents extremely late and we would try everything we can to bring them back to life but to no avail. The most painful statement doctors would tell us was the time factor,” Makhanani Xikwalakwala said.
He added: “I remember how my sister had blood bleeding profusely soon after having challenges in giving birth and how she died. We struggled to call those with vehicles in the area to take her to hospital.
Masvingo Provincial Medical Director, Armadeus Shamu confirmed that network challenges had claimed lots of people`s lives.
“Network challenges have always been a problem in the case of health practitioners. Ambulances are supposed to be raised in time and make a swift response in order to pick up a patient. You cannot do this in an environment that has got a serious communication network. We have received reports of people dying in the process, some on their way to hospital while in an ambulance while some died due lack of information concerning Malaria and many other diseases.
We also had serious challenges in collecting and relaying data from Chiredzi South due to network challenges particularly at the height of the COVID 19 global pandemic,” Shamu said.
Equally affected by the absence of a network in Chiredzi South is the Civic Protection Unit in the district.
“It is really difficult to gather data during disaster management. People get swept away by flooded rivers. Some die while crossing the flooded Limpopo river. A lot of things that need quick attention happen but at times there is no adequate help accorded. You cannot blame anyone in this case,” Chiredzi District Development Coordinator, Lovemore Chisema said.
