Vice President Constantino Chiwenga flew back into Zimbabwe from China last night, and will head straight into work, to lead the COVID committee assigned him this week.
Chiwenga was in China on an undisclosed mission and his return is seen by many in government as a sign of good things to come.
His return was confirmed by senior government officials.
Although coming from a high risk country, he was not quarantined. Last week Botswana’s President was went into self quarantine after a one day visit to Namibia.
Analysts aligned to ZANU PF said he will assist the ongoing government efforts to end the CoronaVirus pandemic. Yesterday president Emmerson Mnangagwa announced saying that the country is going into lockdown mode following South Africa’s own announced during the week. Despite Zimbabwe’s political ally, China encouraging other countries to use the model, Zimbabwe is 3 months behind.
Some critics have added saying the latest government move is misguided, and the exiled former Higher Education Minister Jonathan Moyo said in a thread:
A lockdown for its own sake by decree is not how any country has fought the #coronavirus. A lockdown must be a set of SPECIFIC MEASURES to flatten the #COVID19 curve to stem the spread of the virus and protect the people and the economy. Mnangagwa’s decree lacks such measures!
Livelihood issues aside, most Zimbabweans live in the townships, rural areas, compounds and on the farms in spaces that are so crowded that social distancing and isolation to stem the spread of the #coronavirus is not possible without specific and organised govt interventions!
Mnangagwa decreed the lockdown when nurses and doctors are on strike and yet he said nothing about what govt has done or will do to resolve that. It’s just wrong to decree a lockdown to fight the #coronavirus when nurses and doctors, the key responders in the fight, are on strike!
Mnangagwa’s decree did not have the necessary facts and figures on the medical interventions that govt will do during the 21-day lockdown: where will testing for #COVID19 be done and by who? Which health facilities are ready to treat #COVID19 patients and what’s their capacity?
Last but not least, a lockdown to fight the #coronavirus must necessarily come with an awareness outreach programme, based on Zim’s epidemiological profile, that particularly targets vulnerable groups with suppressed immunity due to preexisting conditions, old age and hunger!
– @ProfJNMoyo