HARARE – President Emmerson Mnangagwa has urged vendors to be “vigilant” over “criminal elements” calling for March 31 street protests against his rule as he also called for a stop in night vending.
Mnangagwa met vendors’ representatives at State House on Wednesday to hear their concerns.
“I urge you as vendors to be alert and vigilant. Never allow the abuse of your sector by criminal elements and drug kingpins,” he said.
Mnangagwa was speaking in apparent reference to expelled Zanu PF central committee member Blessed Geza who has repeatedly called for street protests to demand his immediate resignation.
The Zimbabwe ruler also told vendors to stop trading at night while urging them to conduct their activities in an orderly manner.
“We must have order, and as responsible citizens, we must never gloss over this matter. We must be honest that we cannot let the state of our country degenerate right under our eyes,” he said.
The meeting follows a directive from the Local Government Ministry earlier this month, instructing informal vendors to vacate unregulated trading spaces and also cease night trading. However, many vendors have ignored the call.
Mnangagwa also said his government’s efforts to formalise the sector should not be seen as a direct threat to their livelihoods.
“However, there have been some worrisome trends affecting the sector, and if left unchecked, they will have dire ripple effects on our country, overshadowing the important role of this critical sector,” he said.
Speaking to journalists soon after the meeting, Local Government Minister Daniel Garwe also repeated Mnangagwa’s warning against night vending.
“The Ministry will now take leadership in reigning in all local authorities that are ill-treating vendors. But more importantly, night vending is not allowed; His Excellency was very clear on that,” Garwe said.
He also highlighted the risks associated with night vending, noting, “The people who are night vending are creating fertile ground for drug and substance abuse activities. These same people are also facilitating the distribution of counterfeit products, which are sold at night and find their way into people’s homes, further exacerbating health concerns.”
Lovemore Mudzoki, Secretary of the Tuckshops Association, stated that informal traders would not participate in any planned protests.
“As vendors, we assured the President that we have nothing to do with demonstrations; they disrupt our business. We say no to demonstrations,” he said.
