HAYTA offers free Independent Day fleet, cautions transporters

The Harare Youths Transporters Association (HAYTA) chairman, Mr Edmore Gwengwe has offered a sizeable fleet (buses) to ferry prospective attendees (free of charge) to and from Nembudziya, Gokwe for the Uhuru celebrations, whilst concurrently urging transporters and drivers to adhere to traffic safety rules which save lives during holiday season.

Speaking on the sidelines of an interview during independence celebrations stakeholders preparedness survey, Gwengwe has disclosed that his association has offered and committed some buses to make sure the celebrations are successful.



"Due to our quest for the younger generation to know and understand the history of the liberation struggle, we felt it is important for them to be exposed to context and discourse shaping freedoms which we are enjoying today. We need them to be attached to liberation history stewards and grasp how their selfless contribution during the struggle determines their current contextual realities brought by independence," Gwengwe said.

"For them to understand how unity and sacrifice amongst liberation stewards, heroes and heroines, has contributed towards their independence, we felt that as an association, we should ease transportation of prospective attendees to the main venue in Gokwe. Accessibility and convenience to the venue should be a priority of all genuine transporters so that masses would understand the essence of Zimbabwe's independence free of charge regardless of one's financial status. So we are doing this as an association in our tireless to ensure all patriots and us born free generation do not miss the main address and major activities of that day," Gwengwe added.

"It is also before, during and post this event that we concurrently address precautionary traffic safety measures to ensure that passengers or travellers arrive alive. We need all our affiliates, non-affiliates and related transport operators to adhere to traffic safety rules in order to reduce road carnages during holidays," Gwengwe said.

"We urge transporters and drivers to comply with all legal mechanisms and compliance requests by our law enforcement agents. We are committed to complementing authorities' quest to fight road carnages spike throughout the country," Gwengwe added.

"Transporters should ensure that all vehicles have passed the litmus test for road worthiness compliance prerequisites. We need our law enforcement agencies to ensure that transporters prioritise safety for passengers or travellers (people) first before prioritising profits and daily targets," Gwengwe appealed.

Meanwhile, preparations for the Independence Day celebrations at Nembudziya Growth Point in Gokwe are reportedly nearing full completion, with infrastructure development progressing well.

The official lighting of the Independence Torch took place at the Museum of Human Sciences in Harare this Wednesday.