Correspondent

Human rights lawyer, Beatrice Mtetwa has run a petition signed by thousands of Zimbabweans demanding the immediate dismissal of Health and Child Care Minister, Obadiah Moyo.

The petition was handed over to President Emmerson Mnangagwa, the Speaker of Parliament and Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission chairperson, has 17 899 signatures.

In their demands, Zimbabweans claim the minister has run down the country’s health sector during his turbulent tenure as head of the crucial portfolio and must be relieved of his duties immediately.

Recently, the under-fire cabinet minister was charged for criminal abuse of office after being implicated in a Covid-19 drug and kit procurement scandal.

Together with one Tafadzwa Sambiri, Mtetwa has taken the initiative to initiatie an online petition calling on Mnangagwa to sack his minister.

He described the former Chitungwiza hospital CEO’s term as an “unmitigated disaster”.

“Having been closely monitoring how Honourable Obadiah Moyo has failed to handle genuine grievances of health professionals across the board, we are concerned at the continued deterioration of the public health delivery system under the stewardship of Honourable Obadiah Moyo,” reads the petition in part.

Petitioners also accuse Moyo of failure to handle the current Covid-19 menace despite assuring Zimbabweans February this year the country was fully prepared for the pandemic.

Moyo is accused of failure to adequately prepare for the virus outbreak, “thus leading to erratic and uncoordinated interventions that have led to avoidable death and infections”.

The embattled government official is under fire for “dismal failure to adhere to laid down procurement procedures which have led to the exposure of health professionals across the board and to exposure to the virus by ordinary Zimbabweans”.

The state also strangely did not oppose his granting of bail when he appeared in court.