*Ministers console horror accidents victims* _16 February 2025_ https://chat.whatsapp.com/JnFB3Cvhl1WJxSf4ouzvj6 _by Lovemore Masunungure_ Ministers, Hon. Daniel Garwe, Hon. Felix Tapiwa Mhona, and Hon. Evelyn Ndlovu, the Minister of Provincial Affairs and Devolution for Matabeleland South, on Friday were in Beitbridge to pay their last respects and console the families of the 25 people who died at the Lutumba tollgate. They were involved in a head-on collision between an Urban Connect bus and an Alro Pvt Ltd truck right at the tollgate. The ministers also came to convey His Excellency President Cde Dr. Emmerson Mnangagwa's message of condolences and visited the injured at Beitbridge Hospital. Hon. Garwe, the Minister of Local Government, Public Works, and National Housing, poured his heart out as he expressed his grief and announced that the President had declared the accident a National Disaster. "We know the President is in Ethiopia for the AU Summit, but we have a listening President. He has instructed us to come here and be with you during this very difficult moment. After we heard of the accident, we wrote to inform him about the disaster so that, as usual, all the necessary assistance can be provided to those in the hospital and to those who lost their lives. "We heard the bus had no proper documentation and that the driver last had his re-test five years ago. It's sad. While we may not want to jeopardize the work of those investigating the accident, I must say that drivers should value lives as they drive along our roads," said Hon. Garwe. The Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development, Hon. Mhona, also expressed his condolences and lamented the continuous carnage on the roads, despite the fact that the government has accelerated road rehabilitation efforts across the country. He also called upon the public to desist from the common tendency of taking pictures of victims of road traffic accidents and posting them on social media platforms. "We would like to express our grief at the loss of lives and also thank our great leader, His Excellency Cde Dr. Emmerson Mnangagwa, who has declared this accident a national disaster. We note with sadness that His Excellency Cde Dr. Emmerson Mnangagwa has managed to improve our roads by embarking on a road rehabilitation program that has seen most of our roads undergo significant transformation, including the Harare-Beitbridge road. However, it is sad that this accident took place less than 300 meters from a tollgate, and as you can see here, the road is perfect and well marked. One really wonders what could be happening in the minds of our drivers. We expect drivers to uphold the sanctity of life and to understand that human life is precious. "As a ministry, we are pained at the loss or injury of one person, and here we see that 25 people have perished, these are loved ones and breadwinners. It's so painful, and we surely ask the Lord to console you," he said as he addressed the mourners who had come to identify and collect the bodies of their departed loved ones at the Doves Funeral Parlor in Beitbridge. The Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe also expressed sorrow, and its Managing Director, who came with the Board Chairman Mr. Kura Sibanda, added to the call for responsible driving. "We would like to express our deepest condolences to the families who lost their loved ones in this horrific accident and amplify our call for responsible driving. If you look at the point where the accident happened, it points to overspeeding and some level of careless driving by the bus driver. This is very sad," Mr. Munesu Munodawafa said. A survivor of the crash, Tinashe Chingono, who is a car dealer along Chiremba Road near PicknPay Braeside, said the driver had a nasty exchange of words with passengers all the way from Harare. "The driver was just arrogant from Harare, he kept telling passengers that he was in charge and not the police. He was very rough, and the accident happened as he tried to overtake a combi at the tollgate. The rest I don't know because I woke up here in the hospital," he said, wreathed in pain with a heavy bandage on his head. Honorable Minister Evelyn Ndlovu echoed the call for drivers to exercise responsibility on the roads, concurring with Minister Mhona that the roads have undergone significant improvements under President Mnangagwa's Second Republic. However, ironically, the enhanced road infrastructure has not yielded the expected decrease in road traffic accidents, instead, the numbers seem to be rising. Meanwhile, three people lost their lives in a fatal collision at the 40km peg along the Harare-Masvingo highway, where a Mandaza bus traveling from Chipinge crashed into a Glenview 2 High School bus that had been hired by AFM members for a trip to Chatsworth Rufaro. Thirty-six people were injured, with some sustaining serious injuries, and were subsequently taken to Chitungwiza and Harare hospitals for treatment, while the deceased were transported to Chivhu mortuary. Seke Ward 13 Councillor, Cde Danisa, was present at the scene, where he met Honourable Minister Mhona, who had rushed to the scene upon receiving news of the accident while en route to a Zanu PF Youth Inter-District rally at Duinotor in Seke. Councillor Danisa urged the government to increase the number of ambulances at Beatrice Hospital, citing the facility's frequent overwhelm due to its location along a major highway, which results in a high volume of casualties. Meanwhile, Honourable Minister Mhona reiterated his plea for responsible driving and announced plans to convene a meeting with key stakeholders in the transport sector this week to collaboratively find solutions to the alarming road accidents.