A young woman working at our church had a kombi run over her toes; she also had an injured knee, after a close encounter with a kombi. Another woman is nursing a broken arm in plaster after she was knocked down by a kombi. Two more members of our community were injured when they got in the way of kombis which were in a hurry and did not even stop when they had knocked people to the ground.
A friend with an inclination to take the side of the underdog tried to defend kombi-drivers. Its just youthful exuberance. They just want to show off their driving skills. Nonsense. Even young people have to learn how to be considerate to other people. They have to accept that they do not own the roads, but have to share them with countless others; they cannot pretend these others just do not exist, and they are there just on their own.
What is so remarkable about the driving skills of a kombi pilot who cannot control his vehicle and plunges with it into peoples homes? Kombi driving is about transporting people from the suburbs to their workplaces in town or industrial areas. And yet passengers seem to be the least worried about. They might just as well be sacks of sand. Except that sacks of sands cannot be made to pay. There is no respect for people in this cruel business. It is about money, not people.
Surely, if ever some city fathers and mothers, assisted by some knowledgeable citizens were to sit down to design a really good public transport system, one that respects human dignity and provides at least a minimum of comfort, they would be mad if they opted for the present non-system of kombis. Why is it allowed to continue? It provides some unemployed young men with work. That is about all you can say in its favour.
Every time there is an election round the corner, candidates promise that a commuter train system will be built between Harare and Chitungwiza. Not a bad idea. And it should be done before the open space between the two conurbations is built up completely. Unfortunately, the kombi owners may oppose such plans, their private interests prevailing over the common good.
Post published in: Opinions