COVID-19 COMPLIANCE IN ZIMBA DROPS

ANDREW MUKOMA writes THERE is low compliance in Zimba district among residents of Kamuchezya community in Mapatizya area. Many residents were not adhering to the COVID-19 guidelines and preventive measures, Zimba District Commissioner Elizabeth Kalaluka has noted. Ms Kalaluka said residents in Kamuchezya in Mapatizyawere not adhering to the measures, a situation which was worrying. She said that residents in the area were making unnecessary movements, failing to wear face masks and were not observing social distancing. The DC told the Daily Nation in Zimba that people of Kamuchezya were crossing anyhow into Zimbabwe to buy essential items without taking precautionary measures. Ms Kalaluka said despite her district recording only one case, the virus could spread at a faster rate especially in rural areas such as Kamuchezya. “The health team has been going to Mapatizya time and again to check on the situation and sensitising the people including those working at the mine. “However, the challenge we have is people in Kamuchezyain Mapatizya cross into Zimbabwe every now and then to get things from there. So they are not following the restrictions on unnecessary movements,” Ms Kalaluka said. The DC said despite such challenges in the rural areas, the district administration in conjunction with stakeholders doing everything possible to ensure the district remains COVID-19 free. “That is the biggest challenge we have because if we recorded any case in that area, the virus will spread faster and people will die. “As a district, we are trying because since the outbreak, we have only recorded one case. For the rural areas, let them know that COVID-19 is real and it is killing people so let them follow the guidelines and take precaution measures the Government has put in place,” she said. “It will be very difficult for us as a district to manage the virus if it spread into our rural communities,” Ms Kalaluka said. The Sun