VILLAGERS in Mhondoro, Mashonaland West province, have bemoaned rising cases of stocktheft in the district, a development that has left them poorer.
According to disgruntled villagers in Mhondoro ward 1, rustlers are raiding their cattle pens at night, slaughtering the beasts, deboning them before leaving offals and bones.
Last week, three village heads were victims of a suspected syndicate that has seen close to 50 beasts being stolen from the area.
The affected heads are Manomano, Zibako and Muguti where 10 cattle were stolen and slaughtered near their homesteads and no suspect has been arrested.
“We recovered only parts of slaughtered cattle from the pens,” said one victim, who declined to be named.
Mashonaland West Proportional Representative MP Mutsa Murombedzi said the situation in rural Mhondoro was deeply concerning, especially in the face of drought and poverty.
“Cattle rustling does not only deprive families of their valuable livestock, which often serves as their primary source of wealth, but also exacerbates the already dire conditions caused by drought,” Murombedzi said.
“In rural Mhondoro, where agriculture and livestock are vital for survival, drought severely impacts crop yields and water availability, pushing many into poverty. When cattle, a key asset in such circumstances, are stolen, it strips families of the means to generate income, access food and maintain livelihoods.”
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Added Murombedzi: “The combination of these issues including criminal activity, environmental hardship and economic vulnerability, creates a cycle of poverty that is hard to break.
“We need effective law enforcement, community support and targeted aid to address these interconnected problems, for villagers in Mhondoro not to continue facing worsening conditions.”
Acting police provincial spokesperson Assistant Inspector Effort Chapoto said he was yet to get a report on the cases from the affected district.
“Thank you for the information, but currently, we are yet to get that (report) from the responsible district,” Chapoto said.
“As the Zimbabwe Republic Police, we are fighting the scourge of stocktheft across the province. While patrols are being done, we are encouraging farmers to form village anti-stocktheft teams, which aid in crime prevention of that kind.”
