HARARE – The government was on Monday forced to deny claims a viral image of three people believed to be tourists posing for a photo while sitting inside a huge pothole was taken along the heavily damaged Bulawayo-Victoria Falls highway.
The road, which links the rest of the country to the iconic Victoria Falls, has seen years of neglect by government leading to huge craters developing on the tired infrastructure.
Calls to have the road restored to its former usable state have seemed to go unheeded by authorities who have taken their time to make the necessary repairs.
Perhaps to illustrate the extent of the damage, three cheeky tourists took an amusing image while seated snugly inside a giant crater, forcing an embarrassed government into denial after the image went viral on social media.
In a statement, the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural Development denied the image was taken along the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls highway.
“It has come to our attention that a social media post is circulating, showing 3 people posing in a pothole on a road claimed to be part of the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls Highway,” said the ministry.
“While we acknowledge that certain sections of the highway are in dire need of rehabilitation, the images in the post do not correspond to any section of the Bulawayo-Victoria Falls Highway.
“The sections requiring urgent attention are currently being addressed through a collaborative effort between the Department of Roads and Bitumen World. Work is already underway, with teams camped in Hwange, Halfway, and Insiza to ensure the road is rehabilitated efficiently.”
The Bulawayo-Victoria Falls road also links the rest of the country to the touristy Hwange National Park, Zimbabwe’s biggest wildlife habitat.
It is regarded a major source of wealth for a country heavily dependent on tourism.
