By Loyd Matare
Harare City Council has rolled out a bold anti-drug campaign, teaming up with churches, residents associations, police, and civil society to curb the spiralling drug and substance abuse crisis gripping the capital.
This comes as the country battles a wave of drug addiction among young people, which authorities say is fuelling violent crime, health crises, and social decay.
Public outrage peaked last month after the rape of a three-year-old girl at a Warren Park drug den and the assault of a Grade Seven pupil at Rezende Parcade, incidents that have intensified calls for tougher crackdowns on drug hotspots.
Speaking at Town House today, Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume framed the problem as a city-wide challenge that transcends politics.
ALSO READ: Court Battles Expose Harare’s Explosive Cluster Housing Scandal
“It’s a cross-cutting issue affecting all parties, all big people in society. It’s something that we have to tackle eyeball to eyeball. The moment you create partisan lines on it, you lose the plot.
“It is almost like HIV. You can get it no matter the status of your political affiliation. You will have a drug addict in your family, whether you’re a big wig or a small wig, in any formation of society.
“In this, we need to tackle all and send them out where they are situated and the positions that they have.
“We will say that anyone who is involved in it, big or small…the writing is on the wall and that we will be coming after them at city level, at national levels.
“We will come after you in the capacity that we have as a city. If it requires a national approach, then we will refer it to the national operators that deal with that sort of people or big problem,” Mafume said.
He said that the city will establish a dedicated hotline for residents and whistleblowers to anonymously report drug hotspots.
“People know the drug dens, but they are silenced by fear. This hotline will allow whistleblowers to tip us off without reprisals,” he said.
The mayor further pledged a renewed assault on Harare’s Central Business District, which he said had become a “hub for drug peddling” destroying youth lives.
Part of the drive involves partnerships with First Lady Auxillia Mnangagwa’s Angel of Hope Foundation, which recently opened a 200-bed rehabilitation centre at Stodart Arena.
The centre offers medical treatment, counselling, and youth empowerment programmes.
The campaign will officially kick off in Kuwadzana 6 on September 17, an area flagged as a drug hotspot.
Mafume stressed that the programme will be bipartisan, with councillors from both CCC and ZANU PF on the city’s taskforce.
“The moment you create partisan lines on it, you lose the plot. This is almost like HIV—you can get it no matter your political affiliation. We must confront this epidemic together,” he said.
“We want Harare Gardens to once again be a garden of beauty, not a garden of despair,” he declared.
