Bad weather blows Mnangagwa's Mutare trip

BAD weather derailed President Emmerson Mnangagwa's trip to Mutare at the weekend where he was expected to commission a medical oxygen and industrial gas plant at Feruka, sources have said.

Mnangagwa was expected to commission the plant in the eastern border city on Saturday, but was advised against flying due to bad weather.

Sources yesterday told NewsDay that Mnangagwa's team was advised of bad weather by the Meteorological Services Department before flying to Mutare from Harare.

"I can confirm that President Emmerson Mnangagwa did not manage to travel to Mutare because of bad weather, his team was advised by the Meteorological Services Department that there was fog and it was raining. He was slated to travel in a helicopter, but helicopters normally do not fly when it raining," the source, which preferred anonymity, said.

The source said the commissioning ceremony has been postponed to Thursday.

Zanu-PF Manicaland political commissar Gift Kagweda confirmed to NewsDay that Mnangagwa failed to fly to Mutare due to bad weather, but referred this reporter to the government for more details.

The project that Mnangagwa was supposed to visit is an oxygen plant constructed by Verify Engineering under the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education. The company built the plant which it operates in conjunction with the Harare Institute of Technology.