Monday, July 7, 2025
No Result
View All Result
News Report  Zimbabwe
  • News that Matters
    • News
    • Health and Diseases
    • Technology
    • Religion
    • Horror and Disaster
    • Elections 2023
  • Crime and Courts
  • Celebrity
  • Sports
  • Mjolo
  • Breaking News
  • News that Matters
    • News
    • Health and Diseases
    • Technology
    • Religion
    • Horror and Disaster
    • Elections 2023
  • Crime and Courts
  • Celebrity
  • Sports
  • Mjolo
  • Breaking News
No Result
View All Result
News Report  Zimbabwe
No Result
View All Result
Home News

School Dropouts Now Venturing Into The illegal Business

September 16, 2023
0
School Dropouts Now Venturing Into The illegal Business

Learners in the quiet and remote village of Chesa, 20 kilometres from the world-renowned Khami Ruins Monuments, are abandoning school at the primary level to venture into the illegal business of poaching and selling firewood.

The school dropouts spend most of their time in the forest, cutting down trees and shuttling between Chesa Village and Old Pumula suburb selling firewood to residents.

The firewood is sourced from vast forests stretching towards Nyamandlovu and the surrounding farms.

Mduduzi Nkomo and Makheleni Nkomo, both 18 years old, quit school five years ago when they were 13 and doing Grade Seven at nearby Chesa Primary School.

The boys traded the pen for the axe just two months before writing Grade Seven examinations.

The firewood poachers spend days on end cutting down trees in the forest while hiding from the police, Environmental Management Agency (EMA) officials, and Forestry Commission rangers.

After cutting enough firewood to fill up a donkey-drawn scotch cart, the firewood is transported to Bulawayo at night.

The poachers normally move in groups consisting of usually three scotch carts at any given time.

Mduduzi and Makheleni’s grandmother, Gogo Nkomo, told the source that almost every homestead in the village has a boy who quit school to get into the firewood trade. She said:

Mduduzi and Makheleni did not leave school because there was no money, their parents are in South Africa so school fees were never an issue.

They are not the only ones who stopped going to school to join the firewood business, a lot of boys here in the village are doing it.

Almost every homestead has a boy who is into the business or left school because they say education will not help them in any way.

Two of my donkeys are used by Mduduzi and Makheleni and I hardly see them for days, if not weeks.

Whenever I want firewood or water, I have to ask their friends to pass on the message when they meet in the bush.

Sometimes they come right away or they stay in the bush and come home when they feel like it.

Thembelani Mathe, a mother of four who works for teachers at Chesa Primary School taking care of the teachers’ babies and cleaning their houses, revealed that her son quit primary school to join the illegal firewood trade.

She said her second-born son, 15-year-old Prosper Mathe, turned his back on school in 2021 halfway into the first term in Grade Seven to join a firewood poaching crew. She said:

What could I do to stop him? He had made up his mind and forcing him to go to school was not going to work.

He was simply going to wake up and pretend he was going to school but spend the day cutting down trees for firewood.

It’s painful to watch my son choose this kind of life but what can I do?

The man that Prosper works for owns a house in Old Pumula so he buys groceries that side and brings them back home whenever he gets a chance.

As a mother I fear for his well-being, he might act tough but he is only 15 years old and works with boys and men way older than him.

Another villager, Ndaba Sibanda, said the community is not lazy but the shortage of water in the area makes it difficult for youths to venture into self-sustaining projects such as brick moulding or nutrition gardens.

Sibanda appealed to the Government to drill boreholes and install JoJo tanks to enable villagers to grow vegetables all year round and take the produce to Bulawayo markets.

Source PindulaNews

Tags: Chesa Primary SchoolKhami Ruins MonumentsLearners

Related Posts

Teacher Takes Own Life at Kwite Primary School

Teacher Takes Own Life at Kwite Primary School

by Nyathi
July 5, 2025
0

A quiet morning at Kwite Primary School in Mangwe turned into a scene of horror when a Grade 5 teacher,...

Zimbabwe’s Rehabilitation Plan Raises Eyebrows

Zimbabwe’s Rehabilitation Plan Raises Eyebrows

by Nyathi
July 5, 2025
0

The Zimbabwean government has unveiled a plan to create a private voluntary organization to oversee the rehabilitation of prisoners. The...

Zimbabwean Journalist Arrested Over SADC Commentary

Zimbabwean Journalist Faith Zaba Released on Bail After Power Outage Delays Hearing

by Nyathi
July 5, 2025
0

Faith Zaba, editor of the Zimbabwe Independent, was granted bail on Friday after a power outage interrupted her bail hearing...

The Unspoken Struggles of Zimbabweans Abroad

The Unspoken Struggles of Zimbabweans Abroad

by Nyathi
July 5, 2025
0

The allure of a better life abroad has drawn millions of Zimbabweans to foreign lands, but beneath the surface of...

$4 Million Ecobank Heist: Security Guard Arrested in Major Breakthrough

$4 Million Ecobank Heist: Security Guard Arrested in Major Breakthrough

by Nyathi
July 4, 2025
0

The Bulawayo police have made a significant arrest in connection with the $4 million Ecobank cash heist that occurred on...

The 3-Minute Marriage: A Tale of Love, Laughter, and Annulment

The 3-Minute Marriage: A Tale of Love, Laughter, and Annulment

by Nyathi
July 4, 2025
0

In a shocking turn of events, a newlywed Kuwaiti couple's marriage was annulled just minutes after the ceremony, making it...

Please login to join discussion

Trending News Today

  • Teacher Takes Own Life at Kwite Primary School

    Teacher Takes Own Life at Kwite Primary School

    122 shares
    Share 49 Tweet 31
  • Harare Man Arrested for Attempting to Sell Human Fetus as Beef

    68 shares
    Share 27 Tweet 17
  • Mai Titi’s Latest Drama: Arrest and US$100K Suit Threatened

    82 shares
    Share 33 Tweet 21
  • $4 Million Ecobank Heist: Security Guard Arrested in Major Breakthrough

    199 shares
    Share 80 Tweet 50
  • Lady Mo Dies in Car Accident

    40 shares
    Share 16 Tweet 10
  • The Unspoken Struggles of Zimbabweans Abroad

    69 shares
    Share 28 Tweet 17
  • Family Feud Turns Deadly: Grandson Accused of Killing 89-Year-Old Grandmother

    98 shares
    Share 39 Tweet 25
  • Zimbabwe’s Rehabilitation Plan Raises Eyebrows

    36 shares
    Share 14 Tweet 9
  • Zimbabwean Journalist Faith Zaba Released on Bail After Power Outage Delays Hearing

    39 shares
    Share 16 Tweet 10
  • The 3-Minute Marriage: A Tale of Love, Laughter, and Annulment

    61 shares
    Share 24 Tweet 15

Popular This Week

  • $4 Million Ecobank Heist: Security Guard Arrested in Major Breakthrough

    $4 Million Ecobank Heist: Security Guard Arrested in Major Breakthrough

    199 shares
    Share 80 Tweet 50
  • Roosevelt Girls High School in Hot Water: Parents Raise Concerns Over Fees and Governance

    388 shares
    Share 155 Tweet 97
  • 50 Cent’s Ex Exposes Him as a Cheapskate

    125 shares
    Share 50 Tweet 31
  • Teacher Takes Own Life at Kwite Primary School

    122 shares
    Share 49 Tweet 31
  • Family Feud Turns Deadly: Grandson Accused of Killing 89-Year-Old Grandmother

    98 shares
    Share 39 Tweet 25
  • Police Crack Down on Illicit Liquor Factory

    86 shares
    Share 34 Tweet 22
  • Mai Titi’s Latest Drama: Arrest and US$100K Suit Threatened

    82 shares
    Share 33 Tweet 21
  • Significant Dagga Shipment Intercepted in Harare

    77 shares
    Share 31 Tweet 19
  • Themba Gorimbo: The MMA Fighter Walking a Tightrope Between Sports and Politics

    194 shares
    Share 78 Tweet 49
  • Police Officer Drags Ex-Wife to Court Over Maintenance

    73 shares
    Share 29 Tweet 18

Popular This Month

  • Susan Mutami’s Desperate Plea To  Temba  Mliswa

    Susan Mutami’s Desperate Plea To Temba Mliswa

    457 shares
    Share 183 Tweet 114
  • Roosevelt Girls High School in Hot Water: Parents Raise Concerns Over Fees and Governance

    388 shares
    Share 155 Tweet 97
  • Courtroom Exchange: Mai Jeremiah Questioned by Defense Lawyer

    352 shares
    Share 141 Tweet 88
  • Street Preacher’s Double Life Exposed

    300 shares
    Share 120 Tweet 75
  • 77-Year Marriage Ends Over 60-Year-Old Secret

    273 shares
    Share 109 Tweet 68
  • Former President Robert Mugabe’s Son , Chatunga Causes Havoc in Mazowe

    273 shares
    Share 109 Tweet 68
  • The Whipping Girls of Limpopo

    261 shares
    Share 104 Tweet 65
  • Man Narrowly Escapes Becoming a Lion Snack

    261 shares
    Share 104 Tweet 65
  • The Pilot Who Flew Under the Radar for 20 Years

    244 shares
    Share 98 Tweet 61
  • “Sekuru Malawi” Scams in Mbare

    235 shares
    Share 94 Tweet 59

Most Read Stories

  • “Zimbabwe Is Discrediting SADC”

    ZANU PF Accused Of Bribing SADC Elders To Retain From Losing Power

    5250 shares
    Share 2100 Tweet 1313
  • Madzibaba gets Toyota Aqua after explaining new currency ZiG to church

    4543 shares
    Share 1817 Tweet 1136
  • Breaking News: Zimbabwe launches New Currency (Zig)

    4283 shares
    Share 1713 Tweet 1071
  • Guide : How to access 2023 Zimsec Ordinary O Level results online

    3977 shares
    Share 1591 Tweet 994
  • Uganda Police Officer Shoots Wife Dead After Mocking Him Over Man-U Loss

    3905 shares
    Share 1562 Tweet 976
  • Floods hit Gweru

    3596 shares
    Share 1438 Tweet 899
  • Mashura pa Gokwe musi wa 12.02.24

    3548 shares
    Share 1419 Tweet 887
  • Secret message for ED after his inauguration

    3487 shares
    Share 1395 Tweet 872
  • Heatwave Warning:Expect Extremely hot temp ranging from 36° to 41° until 12 March

    3396 shares
    Share 1358 Tweet 849
  • Here is the reckless Kombi Driver!!!!!!!!!!! See pics here

    3223 shares
    Share 1289 Tweet 806

  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • FAQ
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
  • Home

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • News that Matters
    • News
    • Health and Diseases
    • Technology
    • Religion
    • Horror and Disaster
    • Elections 2023
  • Crime and Courts
  • Celebrity
  • Sports
  • Mjolo
  • Breaking News