The government has scrapped the transport allowances for junior police officers without any prior notice, leaving them in a precarious situation as they now struggle to commute to their workplaces.
According to officers interviewed by NewsDay, this decision is forcing them to resort to humiliating negotiations with unlicensed taxi operators, known as “mushikashika,” to secure free rides.
This situation not only compromises the dignity of the officers but also places them in a conflicted position, as they are tasked with enforcing regulations against the very same mushikashika operators they are now dependent on for transportation.
A police officer who spoke to NewsDay on condition of anonymity revealed that the junior cops have not been receiving the transport allowance since April 2024. Said the police officer:
Most of us got April payslips last week, and that is when we discovered that the transport allowance had been scrapped.
The allowance was equivalent to around US$20. Said another police officer:
It was not enough to cater for the monthly transport costs. The fact that the government has completely abdicated itself from its responsibility of catering for our welfare is an issue of concern.
Even if it was a small amount, it was more important that it was there than to scrap it off when we needed it.
Junior police officers in Harare recently raised the matter and their superiors reportedly instructed them to use their existing cycle allowances to purchase bicycles.
The junior officers were irked by the response given that the senior officers themselves have benefited from top-of-the-range vehicles and other perks provided by the government. Said a police officer:
Yes, we get a cycle allowance, but it is not for us to buy bicycles.
We are supposed to be given bicycles by the State and we get a monthly allowance to maintain that cycle.
It’s a mockery to suggest that we should cycle to work. The situation that we are in is pathetic.
We wait for hours at bus stops asking for free rides. Usually, the pirate taxis offer us transport for free, but they would want favours too.
You can’t board an illegal taxi and as you disembark, you arrest the crew for the illegal practice when you have benefited from the illegality.
Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) spokesperson Commissioner Paul Nyathi told NewsDay that police officers were not given allowances to purchase bicycles, “but are provided with cycle allowances to service and maintain the cycles which they have”. He added:
Cycle allowances are not given to all police officers, but are given to officers who use cycles for police duties, such as patrols and attending scenes.
Police officers who are entitled to receive cycle allowances, but are not getting the allowances are urged to use the appropriate police channels for the concerns to be addressed by the Commissioner-General of Police.
If there are police officers who have been given a directive by anyone who is not the Commissioner-General of Police to buy cycles for use, we appeal to these members to channel such issues through the normal communication procedures and I can assure you these will be attended to.
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