Villagers moan stalling of Nyamoyo River bridge co...

Villagers moan stalling of Nyamoyo River bridge completion

The Nyamoyo River bridge which needs a final layer and reinforcement

Zim Now Writer

Villagers in Ward 4 of Zaka Rural District Council are ruing the stalling of the Nyamoyo River Bridge that links Rwonzi, Maovere, Mundazi and Charikinya villages under Chief Ndanga with Mutimwi Primary and Secondary schools in Zaka North Constituency in Masvingo Province.

The bridge is located just before Nyamoyo River flows into the Nyatare River.

This comes as the project was hampered by the shortage of cement after the initial supplies provided under the Constituency Development Fund was exhausted.

"This bridge is something that we feel should be prioritised. When the project was initiated, it was after a child had been swept away by the flooded Nyamoyo River. If only we could finish it off because it will give us a safe crossing point for our children. Currently, if it rains, we have to rush to check on our children," Gilbert Rwonzi, of Rwonzi Village, one of the villages in Ward 4, said last week.

A Grade Three learner at Mutimwi Primary School was swept away by the flooded river on her way to school two years ago, jogging villagers into action to get the crossing point completed.

"We got used drums from a well-wisher and the engineer is a child from this place, which limited our expenses. Basically, what we are looking at is to get the reinforcement wire and cement to put the last layer to complete the bridge," said Fanuel Tichaurawa Mutumba, a former ward 4 councillor.

Mutumba said besides the safety of children, people in these villages are farmers who will find the bridge useful in transporting their crop to the market using a shorter route and hence less costly.

There are plans for a road that will link to up with the one from Chinyaradza to Mbuyamaswa. People from Mbuyamaswa and surrounding areas under Chief Nhema will find this a relief as it will provide an alternative, shorter route to the Roy-Buffalo Range Highway.