News / Local
Traffic cops free to urinate behind trees at roadblocks
12 May 2017 at 08:01hrs | Views
Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Obedingwa Mguni has given police manning roadblocks countrywide a green light to urinate and defecate in the open as they please as there is no law against that.
Speaking in the Senate on Thursday, Mguni said police 'do not enforce anything which is not lawful' adding that 'if urinating behind the tree is now illegal, the police will be informed by the Minister of Environment'.
He was responding to a question from MDC-T Senator Sithembile Mlotshwa.
Many people have raised the same question as there are no ablution facilities at roadblocks.
Below is the full text as recorded by the Parliamentary Hansard :
HON. SEN. MLOTSHWA: My question is directed to the Deputy Minister of Home Affairs. Hon. Minister, I want to know the Government policy because your department is the one that deals with apprehending the wrong doers to maintain law and order.
How do they manage to apprehend the air polluters since we see your officers in the roadblocks urinating and defecating in the open and affecting people by the nature's smell? How do they apprehend the public?
THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS (HON. MGUNI): Thank you Madam President and thank you for your question Hon. Senator. According to the Constitution, police are bringing peace, investigating crime, preventing crimes and they are also doing it on behalf of every Ministry that is in Zimbabwe.
So, if there is an Act that is being provided by the Ministry who is heading the environment saying no one should urinate behind a tree, police will enforce that one.
That is the duty and we do not enforce anything which is not lawful and where we do not have an Act to act upon it, we will act only when there is an Act that has been passed and is given to us to make the people act lawfully. Therefore, if urinating behind the tree is now illegal, the police will be informed by the Minister of Environment. I thank you very much.
HON. SEN. MLOTSHWA: There is the Environmental Management Act and I think it provides that all the waste be put in a toilet. So, if the police do not know that by now, we are in a danger because we are going to be infected.
Speaking in the Senate on Thursday, Mguni said police 'do not enforce anything which is not lawful' adding that 'if urinating behind the tree is now illegal, the police will be informed by the Minister of Environment'.
He was responding to a question from MDC-T Senator Sithembile Mlotshwa.
Many people have raised the same question as there are no ablution facilities at roadblocks.
Below is the full text as recorded by the Parliamentary Hansard :
HON. SEN. MLOTSHWA: My question is directed to the Deputy Minister of Home Affairs. Hon. Minister, I want to know the Government policy because your department is the one that deals with apprehending the wrong doers to maintain law and order.
How do they manage to apprehend the air polluters since we see your officers in the roadblocks urinating and defecating in the open and affecting people by the nature's smell? How do they apprehend the public?
THE DEPUTY MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS (HON. MGUNI): Thank you Madam President and thank you for your question Hon. Senator. According to the Constitution, police are bringing peace, investigating crime, preventing crimes and they are also doing it on behalf of every Ministry that is in Zimbabwe.
So, if there is an Act that is being provided by the Ministry who is heading the environment saying no one should urinate behind a tree, police will enforce that one.
That is the duty and we do not enforce anything which is not lawful and where we do not have an Act to act upon it, we will act only when there is an Act that has been passed and is given to us to make the people act lawfully. Therefore, if urinating behind the tree is now illegal, the police will be informed by the Minister of Environment. I thank you very much.
HON. SEN. MLOTSHWA: There is the Environmental Management Act and I think it provides that all the waste be put in a toilet. So, if the police do not know that by now, we are in a danger because we are going to be infected.
Source - Byo24News
