Commuter omnibus operators in Bulawayo, operating under the banner “Tshova Mubaiwa Transport Co-operative Company” have approached the High Court challenging Government’s decision to have their kombis operate under the Zimbabwe United Passenger Company (ZUPCO) franchise.
Tshova Mubaiwa Transport Co-operative Company wants an order reviewing and nullifying the Government’s decision which it says is irrational and an act of illegality and a violation of their constitutional rights.
In his founding affidavit, the chairman of the board of directors of Tshova Mubaiwa Transport Co-operative Company, Atlas Moyo said:
This is an application to review and set aside section 4 (2) (a) of the Public Health (Covid-19) Prevention, Containment and Treatment (National Lockdown) Order of 2020. The section of the regulation reads: ‘transport services, whether intracity or inter-city, for the carriage of passengers, shall be restricted to those provided by the parastatal company known as ZUPCO.
… The applicant submits that it has shown good and sufficient cause for the relief it seeks. In the premises, the application seeks an order declaring section 4 (2) (a) of the Public Health (Covid-19) Prevention, Containment and Treatment (National Lockdown) Order of 2020 as being unlawful, irregular and invalid. Consequently, it should be reviewed and set aside.
Tshova Mubaiwa has been providing intracity transport services for the past 34 years. The organisation has 1 635 kombis registered under its franchise.