By Kennedy Nyavaya
Corrupt, demotivated and self-indulgently carefree are some of the traits presented by officers at Gazaland Police Station in a new hilarious sitcom airing online.
Written by renowned standup comedian Tinaye Wayne Chiketa, the production stars Eunice Tava, as Madam Bhebhe, Anna Honde (Mai Yoyo), Timothy Makombe (Screwdriver) and Tanya Alex as Collerta Tshuma, among others.
“Gazaland Police Station is a web show about the police force located at a hypothetical high-density station of Gaza Land. The show is satirical, and seeks to unpack the systematic corruption in the police force as it relates to different issues affecting society,” reads a synopsis on YouTube.
In an interview with Standard Style, Tinaye described Gazaland, a collaborative production between Magamba TV and Paden Network, as an example of artistic ingenuity at the service of fellow citizens.
“Art, which is the cornerstone of civilisation, has that special power to retreat the boundaries of ignorance and usher new exciting forms of nationhood and progress, and that’s a vocation I have always readily answered to,” said Tinaye.
Having already aired two episodes of the 10-episodes — every Tuesday at 9am — the rib-cracking production is targeted at using the satire to “shine the light on a path to sustainable co-existence and harmony as a society”, according to Tinaye.
“Gazaland Police Station aims to unpack the rampant and systematic corruption in the workforce — and likewise each episode has to feed into that objective,” Tinaye said.
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“Since it is a sitcom, we have to marinate the episodes with purely social satire as a way of building up to the ‘hardcore acts’, and this needs balancing.”
With bribery and other misdemeanours threatening to soil what is left of what was once a noble profession, Tinaye as well as the crew behind the scenes attempt to use a talent-laden cast to depict the wrongdoings of the force.
He added that his hope is that Gazaland Police Station will effect positive change within society at large.
“Even more fulfilling and motivating are the unique schemes of things behind the production – the matter of the unmatched teamwork that sparks my motivation.
“Hustling together as different entities and individuals in ways that build synergies and culminate in quality is motivational because ultimately it inspires the youth to want to break ties with unprogressive norms,” added Tinaye.
