Past events in Zimbabwe have proved that the presidential motorcade can be very dangerous and economically wasteful. I would like to suggest banning this dictatorial use of power.
If the banning of the presidential motorcade is not acceptable to the majority of Zimbabweans, then the government should seriously think of downsizing the motorcade and reducing the speed of the outriders.
Our president, Robert Muga-be has the world’s largest motorcade.
Is maintaining this motorcade worth it, considering the poverty bedevilling the nation? Calculations by mathematicians will show that lots of money is wasted on the presidential motorcade each time it travels from the president’s home to his office in the city.
The risk to road users has become too great, with the number of fatalities on ordinary people and outriders rising.
Ordinary civilians using our roads are harassed daily by extremely hostile police officers who are part of the motorcade. Should we, forever, endure such rough treatment from people who are paid from our taxes? African heads of state have now made themselves into demi-gods through the use of these unnecessary escorts.
One notorious “demi-god” was the late president of Malawi, Ngwazi Hastings Kamuzu Banda, who forced everybody off the roads as he and his motorcade drove by. What was that to prove? I do not remember ever seeing Western leaders being accompanied by such huge motorcades.
Ian Douglas Smith, the late prime minister of Rhodesia, never travelled in a motorcade. Our leaders’ high self-esteem is ruining us both economically and psychologically. I have seen scores of ordinary Zimbabweans scurrying across roads like frightened animals each time they hear the sirens of the presidential motorcade.
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We will be creating more dictators if we permit such a maddening tradition to go on. I hope that the people’s new government will ban the use of presidential motorcades and bring back some semblance of peace in our cities. Far too many people have either died or have been severely injured in motorcade accidents.
K F Mhlanga Masvingo
