It seems cracks are starting to appear in the government propped up monopoly that is ZUPCO. Recently some bus drivers that work for the company in Bulawayo staged a demonstration over poor working conditions according to Cite Zimbabwe. The publication shared the following pictures showing the angry drivers at the company’s Bulawayo depot.

Ever since the coronavirus pandemic began the government has used the opportunity to pass some rather strange laws in the guise of protection. One of the most controversial decisions was the banning of kombis (minibus taxis). Ostensibly this was to protect the public against the coronavirus but just like many things the government does it has had the opposite effect. The government monopoly is unable to meet demand and a lot of people have been forced to resort to mushikashika illegal transporters. These often bundle up people into their small cars which increase the chances of the virus spreading.

In a bizarre turn of events, the government recently commandeered National Railways of Zimbabwe trains and started running them under the ZUPCO banner as committer trains. It’s not even clear why they opted for such an arrangement when the NRZ itself is quite capable of running a passenger service. This is one of their mandates. according to the NRZ ACT.