Our lives matter!

Sinqobile Tessa
SEEKING DIVINE INTERVENTION: Portrait of a praying child

Where do I even start with all this doom and gloom that has engulfed our nation?

So much is going so wrong in our country, prompting many to rhetorically ask; what sin did we commit as Zimbos to deserve such?

Last Tuesday, seven stillborn babies died in one night at Harare Central Hospital as a result of delayed treatment, lack of drugs and medical equipment.

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Former President of Zimbabwe Hospital Doctors Association, Dr Peter Magombeyi posted the heart-wrenching picture of the dead bodies wrapped in green pieces of cloth and lined on a table, waiting to be disposed off.

“We have been robbed of our future, including our unborn babies. Please stop the looting,” he tweeted, with another doctor adding that this was just the tip of the iceberg as people were ‘dying in numbers’ in government hospitals.

The shocking, extremely painful story caught the attention of the international media.

While this and the failure of our healthcare system was still the talk of the town, the regime again showed its uglier side and unleashed terror on the people who were supposedly involved in the planning of the anti government march which was supposed to take place last Friday.

More than 20 people have either been beaten up, arrested or tortured since last week on suspicion of plotting the blocked demonstrations.

Some of the wanted individuals have since gone into hiding fearing what will be done to them if they are caught.

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They are right to be wary.

One of the victims had his buttocks severely burnt after the police torture and it has since been established that he is now suffering from renal failure.

The image of his battered buttocks and that of security forces beating up civilians prompted global outrage.

ZimbabweanLivesMatter has been trending on social media especially Twitter, with quite a number of high profile South African politicians, artists and socialites supporting the movement and calling on the regime to stop the brutality and for SADC to act.

Unfazed by this, President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Tuesday labeled the opposition and other dissenting voices as terrorists, a term which should not be taken lightly by all means. We know how they deal with perceived enemies. They have no mercy.

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Meanwhile, much to the shock of many, Vice President, General Constatino Chiwenga was on Tuesday appointed Health Minster.

It remains to be seen how he will handle the health crisis as he once ordered firing of nurses and doctors who went on strike demanding salary adjustments and better working conditions.

Oh and by the way, his Permanent Secretary, who was also recently appointed, is a former soldier; orders will be barked I tell you!

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