GWANDA residents have called for heavy police presence as some gold panners operating in the area have been terrorising members of the public.

Speaking recently during a Gwanda Local Peace Committee (LPC) meeting, Ward Five councillor, Mr Ernest Ncube, said the rowdy gold panners who were sometimes armed with machetes were a menace to residents from his area.

He said the gang was destroying property, fighting in public and threatening residents.

“We have a serious problem in Ward Five. There are two business centres namely Njanji Shopping Centre and Red Cross Business Centre which have become hotspots.

“At Njanji Shopping Centre there is a nightclub where gangs comprising mostly gold panners gather. When the nightclub closes at 4AM these gangs regroup and start gambling outside.

“Their gambling results in altercations and these fights move to residential areas and in the process people are affected. Their property is destroyed and all of these violent activities have left residents unsettled as they fear for their lives,” he said.State media