'Dembare tragedy a lesson,' says minister

Government yesterday expressed shock over the road accident that claimed eight Dynamos fans and said the owner of the vehicle put the passengers at risk by not adhering to safety standards.

The tragedy has plunged the Glamour Boys in particular and domestic football in general into mourning.

Sport and Recreation Minister Makhosini Hlongwane yesterday visited survivors of the tragedy to provide the message that they were not walking alone in these trying times.

Hlongwane was in the company of National Football Association of Zimbabwe (NAFAZ) president Philip Chiyangwa, who has been playing a very prominent role, including footing some of the bills for the injured to be ferried to hospital.

"It is very unfortunate that this very tragic accident has visited and robbed the sport sector of some of the most finest supporters for the sector and, most importantly and most particularly, for football," said Hlongwane.

"As Government we want to emphasise the safety of our players and athletes. We also want to emphasise the safety of supporters, be they travelling to watch the games or to provide the much-needed support.

"This is obviously a very important lesson for us as a ministry and as Government. We are going to sit down with the football authorities and see if we can design a template of how to make sure that we enable and enforce a protocol of safety that is recognised by all clubs and actors within the sport fraternity in our country as a way of protecting not just our fan base but also our athletes.

"It is very important that we take that direction."

Hlongwane was at Parirenyatwa Hospital yesterday where Patience Marufu was the only survivor of that horrific crash still admitted at the hospital.

Her condition was stable at the time of the visit.

Most of the injured had been discharged by yesterday but three others were still admitted at Harare Hospital.

Hlongwane and Chiyangwa also visited Dynamos rookie forward King Nasama's residence in Southlea Park to see his mother, Shylet Tinonetsana, who was also injured in the accident.

She told Hlongwane that she was seated at the back seat when the accident occurred. But prior to the accident, she said she alerted the driver she was smelling some smoke from the rear tyres.

Tinonetsana said the bus was not speeding but the problem was that it had two rear tyres instead of four.

She said after she was discharged from Parirenyatwa Hospital, she sought further medical help at a private clinic and was given a neck brace.

Doctors told her that she sustained some cracks on the neck bones.

King Nasama was not at home during the visit but Chiyangwa called and spoke to him on his mobile phone.

Hlongwane said the owner of the vehicle had risked the passengers' lives by not adhering to proper safety measures.

"The fittings on the vehicle were not done properly. Having one wheel instead of two is not allowed. Movement of supporters to see their teams should ensure safety of fans in the first place," said Hlongwane.

"I will be discussing with my Cabinet colleague, Minister of Home Affairs, Ignatius Chombo and the NAFAZ president so that we do not witness another horrific accident in future.

"This could have been anybody, this could also have been a football team being moved from point A to point B.

"We need to have roadworthy vehicles on the roads. Losing fans is like losing fuel that gives one energy to be able to move on and of course the general support base of Dynamos and the entire sport sector in Zimbabwe.

"We wish the injured a healthy recovery. Ordinarily speaking, Government through Ministry of Local Government could have declared the accident a disaster, but there is a minimum threshold for Government to intervene at that level.

"We extend our morale support, we extend our deepest sympathies to Dynamos as a club and to the sport sector in general."

He urged Tinonetsana to continue supporting soccer.

Four of the accident victims were buried yesterday.

Chiyangwa told Tinonetsana that Nasama had dedicated his goal to her, not knowing that she had survived.

Hlongwane said that the Government conveyed "its deepest and profound sympathy to the families of those that lost their loved ones in this very tragic accident and secondly to Dynamos as a club".

Chiyangwa also narrated the events on the day when the accident occurred.

He said that at first, reports suggested 10 supporters had died.

"I then advised the minister about the accident. I then drove to Kwekwe General Hospital and later visited the scene.

"At the hospital, I found out that doctors had not attended to the injured ones. That's when I said to myself, what's the point of keeping patients at the hospital when they are not being attended to?

"Their relatives are far away in Harare. I then decided to call Emras to come and ferry the injured to Harare and I paid the bill. Thirteen of the injured supporters were then transferred to Harare by ambulances which I summoned from Harare, Gweru and Kadoma," said an emotional Chiyangwa.