Women up in arms over brothels operated by MP's family

Gwanda women are reportedly angry at two hotels cum brothels that are operated by Gwanda North member of parliament Madodana Sibanda's family and housing scores of prostitutes coming from as far afield as Harare.

According to reports from the town women under the banner of Women In Leadership Development (WILD) met in Gwanda recently and discussed the issue of the increase of prostitution in the town. In the discussions it emerged that the businesses operated by the MP's family where he is said to be a partner is housing the majority of the prostitutes. The ventures are suspected to be renting out a total of up to 50 rooms housing up to four prostitutes each payable on a daily rate of about $15 per person.

The women attending the workshop are reported to have been shocked by reports that besides the good business from the local informal gold miners who frequent the brothels school children as young as 12 are being serviced by the caning prostitutes.

A Bulawayo24 correspondent deployed to keep watch at one of the brothels located at Jahunda Shopping Centre and updating the paper via Whatsapp confirmed that over 42 men and about 6 boys of school going age visited the place in an hour on Saturday afternoon.

According to the source, the sex workers spend the day sitting outside the "hotel" at the shopping centre area and surrounding bars picking up men for a "quickie" which costs between $5 and $10. According to reports the young boys can even be allowed to satisfy their egos for a paltry $2 perhaps because of their little level of efficiency.

Pumulani Hotel No 2 is a full fledged Hotel, Bar and Nightclub spot and is arguably Gwanda's busiest night spot because of the availability of the ladies who take the men to their hotel rooms for quickies. One of the ladies who confessed to have come to the town from Ruwa near Harare says she makes about $40 a day on a bad day at the place or up to $100 on a good day.

She says her family does not know that she is in Gwanda, they think she is working in Johannesburg. She says they can't doubt her because of the money and goodies from near by Mesina she sends them regularly. She says even when she goes back home and speaks a bit of Ndebele she is learning from her clients they are convinced she is from Johannesburg and speaking IsiZulu.

Confirmed reports from the women's meeting are that a petition is currently being circulated in the town amongst other women requesting the Honourable Member of Parliament to remove the women. The petition is reportedly getting a huge response from the women of the town who are even threatening to go on a demonstration at the MPs other business, a petrol filling station, to get him to remove the women. The women are reported to be excited about the petition as their husbands are reported to be also finding their way to the service points. Asked for a comment on the possible evictions, one of the women resident at No 1 who identified herself as Prudence, said that the women of Gwanda were being jealous of their business and are just being tribal.

"The issue here has nothing to do with morality, these are women who we beat on business and they are just jealous of our booming business and its nothing but just tribalism," said Prudence.

"Its a fact that in this business you can not thrive in your home town, if they want business they must go to Harare where Shona people want Ndebele women just like the Ndebele men here want Shona women. Even if we leave we know they will take the rooms and fail to pay as they won't get the business," she added.

A colleague of Prudence who identified herself as Pamela confirmed that some of her friends were indeed going after school boys especially on bad days and would be in need of money for food. She also confirmed that the young boys pay between $3 and $5 for a quickie that normally doesn't even last 3 minutes which according her its "free money" to the women.

Ministry of Health statistics indicate that Gwanda District has the highest number of HIV infections in the country. A couple of years ago there was also a huge fight at a Gwanda night club when Ndebele speaking sex workers clashed with their Shona rivals over clients. The town also boasts of a huge number of informal miners who carry with them large sums of money and always ready to spend even on women.