A GROUP of worshippers recently gathered at the 52km peg along Harare-Mutare Highway conducting prayers at the stretch where several fatal road accidents have been recorded.
“This stretch is a blackspot and we are here to pray and plead with God to cleanse this area to avoid future road accidents,” said one of the worshippers, Admire Mukanga (41), from Marondera.
Zimbabwe’s roads have become arenas of untold sorrow, where lives are lost and families shattered daily.
The alarming rise in road accidents has left the nation searching for answers in desperation, with some turning to holding prayers at blackspots, seeking divine intervention to tame the carnage.
Traditional enthusiasts have also joined in through performing rituals to cleanse blackspot areas of avenging spirits causing fatal road accidents along the highways.
Can faith or religion alone reverse the deadly trend?
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Marondera-based cleric Clyde Tsiga said conducting prayers at blackspots was one of several solutions to reducing deaths on the roads.
“The issue of blackspots has several beliefs and it also depends on the cause of the accident. As the church, we do visit such blackspots to offer prayers to the Almighty God for assistance,” said Tsiga.
“But it is also wise to look at what will be causing the road accidents. It is a cocktail of causes, from dangerous curves, speeding and intoxication.”
According to the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZimStat), a 7,9% increase in traffic accidents was recorded in the third quarter of 2023.
A World of Statistics report released last year stated that 41 per every 100 000 people die in road traffic accidents in Zimbabwe.
A traditional healer, Roy Musavengana, said it was advisable for rituals to be conducted at blackspots to avoid more deaths in road accidents.
“It is recommended for rituals to be conducted at blackspots or accident scenes to appease the spirits of those who would have died. There are avenging spirits, they can cause more road accidents, hence the need to cleanse the area,” Musavengana said.
About five people die everyday on Zimbabwe’s roads, according to the Traffic Safety Council of Zimbabwe (TSCZ), with the major cause being speeding.
A 2018 research conducted by TSCZ showed that 94% of road accident deaths and injuries are a result of human error, vehicle defects (5%) and environment (1%).
“In Zimbabwe, holding prayers at blackspots or accident scenes is very important and very effective,” said Arrive Alive Awareness Zimbabwe director Isaac Simbarasi.
“The effectiveness of this exercise is subject and open to interpretation. Many people believe prayers bring divine protection and guidance. Prayers foster unity, awareness and collective responsibility within the community.
“Inasmuch as prayers may offer spiritual and psychological support as well as community healing by providing emotional support and community healing, practical measures are also very important. Having measures like enforcement of traffic rules and regulations will do the magic in reducing road accident deaths.”
Statistics for January to May this year show that there were 21 183 road traffic accidents which resulted in 4 350 people getting injured and 860 deaths.
This translates to a road accident every 10 minutes.
About 150 people die monthly on the country’s roads.
Abnormal Vehicle Escorts Association chairperson Emmanuel Machikwa, however, said performing rituals at blackspots was not of any significance.
“At a blackspot, if you check well, you will realise that there is a risk there. It could be a sharp curve, narrow bridge or blind rise. At every blackspot, there is a condition favourable for accidents to happen,” he said.
“Instead of rituals and prayers, we should educate our drivers to respect areas prone to accidents and ensure that there is proper road signage at those places.”
Most accidents are recorded during the festive season and church pilgrims due to high volumes of traffic coupled by the bad state of our roads.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa recently raised concern over the surge in road traffic accidents in the country which he attributed to recklessness.
“With regards to the numerous roads that have been rehabilitated and modernised throughout the country, I am gravely alarmed by the number of road traffic accidents,” he said.
“Let us quickly adapt to the emerging realities associated with our fast-approaching upper-middle-income society status with a higher quality of life. Let us save lives by being cautious on our roads.”
Transport and Infrastructural Development minister Felix Mhona says road traffic accidents in the country are claiming at least five lives per day, resulting in an average loss of US$406 million a year.
As the country grapples with reducing deaths along the highways, various solutions have been brought forward among them conducting prayers and performing rituals at blackspots across the country.
These efforts, coupled with road traffic awareness campaigns, have, however, done little to stop blood spilling on the roads as the nation continues to record road traffic accidents daily.