HARARE – Police mounted checkpoints on roads leading to major cities and towns on Monday, searching some vehicles for “dangerous weapons” in anticipation of planned anti-government protests.
Traffic into the centre of Harare and Bulawayo was noticeably reduced as many appeared to have chosen not to go to work and children stayed away from school.
A truckload of police
drove up and down on an emptied Joshua Mqabuko Street in Bulawayo, looking for any trouble.
A ZimLive correspondent in the CBD of Zimbabwe’s second city said: “It’s like Sunday morning. Not many people or cars around.”
Outspoken war veteran Blessed Geza called for an “uprising” against President Emmerson Mnangagwa, charging him with leadership failures and paying lip service to corruption.
Authorities have charged Geza with treason, but he has eluded capture.
On the eve of Monday’s planned protests, the former Zanu PF central committee member wrote on X: “Lets fill up the streets. Mnangagwa gust go. It’s for every Zimbabwean. Lets stand up against corrupt rule.”
At 8AM across Zimbabwe, there were no signs of protests on the streets.
“The call was for people to flood the streets but it appears so far Geza has achieved the opposite with many staying at home perhaps out of fear of what could happen,” a ZimLive correspondent in Harare reported.
“Geza will claim a partial victory – one man causing so much chaos and potential harm to the economy which will no doubt take a hit from the industries that won’t open.”
Large supermarkets in the city centres of both Bulawayo and Harare did not open their doors.
Police had called on Zimbabweans to go about their business as usual, promising sufficient security.
Leave was cancelled for all police officers who were also surprised when the government deposited US$50 into their individual accounts last Saturday.
Police detectives were also made to sign a document under the Official Secrets Act committing to remain loyal to the government; to carry out any instruction given by the police commissioner and also never to divulge information on arrested suspects.
