Police
officers
and
Vehicle
Inspectorate
Department
(VID)
officials
who
were
manning
a
roadblock
that
cleared
the
Urban
Connect
bus
involved
in
a
recent
fatal
accident
in
Beitbridge
are
now
under
investigation
to
determine
why
they
allowed
the
bus
to
continue
on
its
ill-fated
journey,
reported HeraldOnline.
This
follows
the
suspension
of
Urban
Connect
Holdings’
operating
licence
for
six
months
by
Transport
and
Infrastructural
Development
Minister
Felix
Mhona,
after
a
tragic
head-on
collision
with
a
haulage
truck
on
the
Beitbridge-Masvingo
highway
that
claimed
28
lives.
The
suspension
was
due
to
several
violations,
including
the
bus
lacking
a
valid
passenger
insurance
policy
and
route
permit,
as
well
as
the
driver
failing
to
meet
the
re-test
requirement.
In
response
to
concerns
raised
by
legislators
about
police
officers
permitting
unroadworthy
buses
to
pass
through
roadblocks,
Mhona
asserted
that
moving
forward,
officials
manning
roadblocks
will
be
held
accountable
for
neglecting
their
duties
and
allowing
such
buses
to
pass
unchecked.
He
said:
It
is
saddening
that
we
have
our
people
manning
roads
and
we
actually
speak
to
those
supervising
roadblocks.So,
I
have
engaged
my
counterpart,
the
Minister
of
Home
Affairs,
to
say
that
police
and
VID
officials
will
be
held
accountable
if
they
allow
buses
to
pass
through
manned
roadblocks
and
are
subsequently
involved
in
accidents.
Urban
Connect
bus,
carrying
65
passengers,
collided
head-on
with
an
Auro
Transport
haulage
truck,
which
had
four
occupants,
near
Lutumba
Toll
Gate
at
around
8
AM
on
Thursday,
February
13.
The
accident
occurred
as
the
bus
attempted
to
overtake
another
vehicle.
The
bus
was
travelling
from
Harare
to
Beitbridge,
while
the
truck
was
heading
in
the
opposite
direction.
Post
published
in:
Featured