LOCAL Government Minister July Moyo has said kombis are not coming back.
Minister Moyo reiterated that only ZUPCO buses, or those under the ZUPCO franchise, are allowed to ferry passengers.
Government banned private kombis at the beginning of the Covid-19 outbreak in 2020.
“Private kombis are not coming back, President Mnangagwa is working very hard to purchase ZUPCO buses which will be enough to cater for the commuting public,” Minister Moyo said.
The police also warned the public not to board mushika-shika transport as they risk being robbed or killed.
For the past few months, police has been recording cases in which people were raped, robbed or killed.
“The Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) reiterates that members of the public must avoid boarding mushikashika vehicles or use their private vehicles as pirate taxis as they risk falling prey to robbers,” police spokesperson Assistant Commissioner Nyathi said.
Zimbabwe Passengers Association president, Tafadzwa Goriyati, said passengers were facing a transport crisis as ZUPCO was ending its evening operations earlier than expected.
“In the evening, passengers are boarding anything which comes on the road because of the shortage of ZUPCO transport, people are being robbed of their possessions because of transport challenges,” he said
Patricia Mberi, who lives in Budiriro, said their area was being serviced by one ZUPCO bus.
“If you miss that bus, you will have to wait for another trip, commuting to town is very hard and expensive because you hike from here and you pay US$1 to the roundabout and board another car to town,” she said.
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