Chaos at Macheso fundraising gig

There was chaos at Mucheke Stadium in Masvingo on Saturday night after electricity was cut off for at least four hours during a Tokwe-Mukosi fundraising show provided by sungura artist Alick Macheso and dendera musician Tryson Chimbetu.

All hell broke loose as thousands of people who had turned up for the fundraising show organised by the Zimbabwe International Red Cross refused to leave the venue, demanding their money back or that the musicians perform on stage.

The fracas began after the PA system developed a technical fault which saw engineers failing to rectify the problem, resulting in the audience losing patience.

For almost four hours, fans declined to leave the venue, but continued to brave the chilly weather as they demanded answers from Zimbabwe Red Cross Society (ZRCS) officials who, on their part, failed to calm the situation.

ZRCS vehicles with logos were denied exit from the venue as the crowd barred all entry points, ordering officials to re-imburse them their money.

The audience also converged at Macheso's car, demanding that he goes on stage and sing without instruments and a sound system.

However, the problem was rectified at around 2am, with the ZRCS ambassador apologising to the crowd before promising them compensation for lost time,

"We are sorry for what has just happened, but I am happy that you were patient and I am going to compensate your lost time by playing until 6am," said Macheso.

ZRCS communications manager Takesure Mazuruse said the situation was bad and it could have turned ugly had it not been Macheso in charge.

"Things could have been worse if it was another musician other than Macheso. We were lucky that his fans are mature people, Yes, they demanded answers but it was beyond our control. We are happy that all went well after," said Mazuruse.

After the hiccup, Macheso kept revelers on their feet as he belted out most of his popular tunes. He mostly sang love songs like Madhawu, Cynthia and Shedia, among others.

Earlier in the day, Macheso had serenaded the fans by dancing with an unidentified woman at the show.

The crowd would go wild each time he showcased his bass guitar playing antics.

But the moment of the morning came when Tryson Chimbetu joined his mentor on stage. The two collaborated well on popular dendera songs like Saina and Samatenga, with Macheso playing the bass guitar.

The event was part of the International Red Cross Day commemorations held at Civic Centre in Zimbabwe's ancient city of Masvingo.