By Natalie Sindile Nyathi
Business Reporter
Wherever there is a pirating vehicle, there is a tout.
Touts are self employed, self deployed and self managed at each and every corner were a M’shikashika is found.
And nowadays especially in the Royal City, touts are found anywhere wherever Commuter Omnibuses commonly referred to as “Kombis” pirate, acting as rank marshals.
The best dictionary description of a tout is the one which says,
a person who attempts to sell (something) typically by direct or persistent approach.
And their approach is extremely persistent. In Bulawayo, the City of Kings and Queens, touts are resident at the Centre Parking of City Hall along 8th Avenue and Fife Street, they are ‘managers’ at Fort Street and 10th Ave as well as on 11th Ave, 12th Ave and everywhere else.
They have recently opened another rank on 8th Ave and Fort Street opposite the Library.
Chaos reigns at L. Takawira Ave and H. Chitepo Street opposite the Tradegold Magistrate Courts, and the same can never be over emphasised at 6th Ave and H. Chitepo Street.
Touts’ behavioral tendencies have been likened to children born of the same mother, their characters are the same everywhere they are found.
Most of them are enemies of the bathroom, they have this body odour that would cause one to puke, they don’t shave off their armpit hairs yet they love wearing vests.
Touts are extremely foul mouthed, vulgar and totally disrespectful. They do not care at all of their constituency, the passengers. To them a 10 year old passenger is the same as an old lady of 60 years.
“Magogo, lapha akula first class, akuyehlala le emuva kumbe uyedinga eyakho imota.”
Old lady this vehicle has no first class, go and sit at the back, or find your own car.
Shouted one tout at the illegal 6th Avenue tax rank to an old lady who want to seat at the front seat.
They become ‘powerful’ during peak hours, in the mornings and evenings when passengers are desperate to get to work or go back home.
‘Uhamba umodela emgwaqweni, asikho kucatwalk lapha, akungenemoteni”
You are modelling on the road, this is not a catwalk, stop that walk and get into the car
They can to the extreme of using deep vulgar language to tease each other, the same words are thrown to passengers. Touts do not think twice when insulting members of the public for.
They do so with impunity.
As self employed managers or rank marshals, they manage or control the Kombis that pick up passengers at these illegal taxi ranks. Off course they do it at a fee.
While they control the rank queues, they have caused chaos and congestion especially at 6the Avenue and Leopold Takawira Avenue.
Ordinary motor vehicles find it very difficult or delayed when the try to pass through these street and avenues, the pirate taxis willy-nilly block the roads without think twice about other motorists.
Their violent behaviour has been felt and experienced by many passengers who rely on these illegal taxi ranks for transport. At times they become physical.
“They broke my phone, it shattered into 2 pieces and it did not end there. At some point one came unto me and tried to snatch my bag, all along l had been oblivious of the movement infront of me as l had my headphones on”, said one of the Cowdray Park passengers Sindiswa.
However sometimes they show some semblance of being good citizens as they identify thieves and chase them away from the Taxi rank thus playing the watchdog role of protecting citizens from thieves and robbers.
Touts have helped many school children who would have been lost and those who spend transport fare to board Kombis. Touts have ensured that these children reach their destinations without paying
On the dark side touts have been responsible for hiking fares when the public transporter, (ZUPCO) buses are not available. They become selfish and hike fares from ZA10 Rands to US$1 without consideration whatsoever.
They also deceive passengers into boarding vehicles which do not reach their destination just so as to make sure the Kombi has the prerequisite number of passengers.
In as much as touts help drivers to ferry passengers in an orderly manner, maintain order, identifying robbers, provide equal opportunities to Kombi drivers, help citizens not to board suspicious vehicles so as to avoid women getting kidnapped and raped, on the bad side they also harass, force people to board vehicles which they do not want, that is violence and violence should not be condoned.
Touts violence is emotional as well as physical. A passenger is left with a permanent scar because of the foul language filled to brim in many a tout.
If law enforcement agencies like the Zimbabwe Republic Police, (ZRP) and the local authority municipal police, Bulawayo. Municipal Police (BMP) were to play their roles and duties aderntly, touts would not be seen at each and every corner, the Zimbabwean law forbids touting.