News / National
Kombi crews kidnap, injure six police officers
17 Apr 2013 at 00:13hrs | Views
AT least six police officers were injured after being kidnapped and attacked during running battles with commuter omnibus crews in the last three months in Harare.
According to police statistics, the incidents occurred between February this year and last Thursday while the officers were on duty.
Acting Harare provincial police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Tarirai Dube said that during the same period, police recorded four cases of attempted murder and one culpable homicide which were perpetrated on the officers by kombi drivers and conductors.
"The issue of misbehaving by commuter omnibus drivers and conductors can be traced back to August 2010 when there was a menace in the central business district where commuter omnibus crews were picking up and dropping passengers at undesignated points, in total disregard of the law," she said.
Asst Insp Dube said this resulted in the force launching an operation code-named 100 percent CBD decongestion to curb the menace. "However, the kombi crews became wild and a number of attempted murder cases, culpable homicide cases perpetrated on police officers who were on duty under the operation were recorded," she said.
Asst Insp Dube said the operation was continuing and they had managed to reduce the number of commuter omnibus crews who drop and pick up commuters at undesignated points. She said there were others who were continuing with such practices with some kidnapping officers and assaulting them after being arrested.
"If we look at all these incidents, they all point back to the commuter omnibus drivers, operators and conductors as they are always caught on the wrong side of the law," said Asst Insp Dube.
She said most of the kombi drivers did not have the required documents to be on the road, while commuters had also developed a habit of not wanting to use designated pick-up and drop-off points.
Asst Insp Dube said kombi crews had now resorted to fleeing from the police to the extent that they were hitting innocent people either on pavements or near intersections.
Asst Insp Dube reiterated that the force's mandate was to protect life, property and preserve security in the country and it would continue tightening their operational systems until there was sanity.
According to police statistics, the incidents occurred between February this year and last Thursday while the officers were on duty.
Acting Harare provincial police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Tarirai Dube said that during the same period, police recorded four cases of attempted murder and one culpable homicide which were perpetrated on the officers by kombi drivers and conductors.
"The issue of misbehaving by commuter omnibus drivers and conductors can be traced back to August 2010 when there was a menace in the central business district where commuter omnibus crews were picking up and dropping passengers at undesignated points, in total disregard of the law," she said.
Asst Insp Dube said this resulted in the force launching an operation code-named 100 percent CBD decongestion to curb the menace. "However, the kombi crews became wild and a number of attempted murder cases, culpable homicide cases perpetrated on police officers who were on duty under the operation were recorded," she said.
"If we look at all these incidents, they all point back to the commuter omnibus drivers, operators and conductors as they are always caught on the wrong side of the law," said Asst Insp Dube.
She said most of the kombi drivers did not have the required documents to be on the road, while commuters had also developed a habit of not wanting to use designated pick-up and drop-off points.
Asst Insp Dube said kombi crews had now resorted to fleeing from the police to the extent that they were hitting innocent people either on pavements or near intersections.
Asst Insp Dube reiterated that the force's mandate was to protect life, property and preserve security in the country and it would continue tightening their operational systems until there was sanity.
Source - TH
