Jokes fly over quail bird farming ban

Likewise, they have since turned the recent government ban on commercial quail birds farming into some of them.

The jokes are a tongue in cheek dig at the Zimbabwean government for its propensity to invoke the country’s laws on activities that bring food on citizens’ lives.

Quail birds are known as izigwaca/zvihuta in Ndebele and Shona.

Quail bird farming has been a hit among Zimbabwean poultry producers for its relative ease in running and fast returns.

Banned quail bird farming … Minister Oppah Muchinguri

However, the government, through the environment ministry, struck last week, banning the raising of quail birds for commercial purposes, in the process triggering a drastic price reduction by panicking farmers.

But some creative Zimbabweans have now taken to social media to express their disquiet, albeit in a lighter way.

Other messages circulating via Whatsapp groups and other social media platforms say that the quail bird’s sudden availability is biblical.

They are quoting from the King James version book saying that during the Israelites’ transition from the land of wilderness to the promised land of milk and honey, God fed them with quail birds.

They say that the sudden hit of commercial bird farming in the country was good prophecy for Zimbabweans.

“We are coming out of a season of economic dryness and God has remembered us,” reads the message.

“Zvihuta, plenty all of a sudden, our milk and honey is about to flow into our nation, God loves Zimbabwe.”

Stand-up comedian Doc Vikela said the ban may have come from the higher office because the quail bird has become so popular compared to the jongwe (cock) symbol at the top of the Zanu PF’s main headquarters in Harare.

Some are mocking the ruling party through photo-shopping the Zimbabwean and Zanu PF flags.

In one of the instances, some cheeky Zimbabweans are removing the Zimbabwean bird image from the national flag and replacing it with the quail bird.

Vendors have also been caught up in the craze through printing t-shirts branded “zvihuta” at the back and have found business peaking for them.

Another message also circulating on social media is a “conversation” between and boy and girl who introduces her name as Chichi to the boy who is then asked to guess the full name.

After a few incorrect guesses, the girl blurts out, telling the bemused boy she was in fact called Chihutachashe (God’s quail bird).

Another creative Whatsapp group member has taken the word as an abbreviation for something else and have taken delight in circulating the message to group members.

“I am proud to be a member of this Whatsapp group because you are crazy, hilarious, intelligent, humble, understanding, trustworthy and admirable; in short you are C.H.I.H.U.T.A,” the message says.

Government banned the use of the wild bird for commercial purposes on the ostensible bid to “protect citizens” from alleged conmen who were trading it and its eggs claiming that it has some medicinal value.

It also announced that those that want to keep the bird have to apply for a permit at a cost of $1,000.

Brands such as soaps and other detergents have also seen their trademarks being removed and replaced with that of the quail bird.

The wild birds are well known for giving farmers a torrid time by eating and destroying maize crops and other produce during planting season to the extent that growers have to call for assistance from government to kill the feral birds.

But the small black and white, brown stippled birds then, has become so popular in the country to the extent that some people in urban areas had turned their back yards into fowl runs for quail production.