The case of six students caught engaging in sexual activity at a Chitungwiza lodge continues to unfold, revealing a complex web of events and raising serious questions about underage access to such establishments.
The story’s unexpected twist involves the whistleblower: a former head boy from one of the students’ schools, and the taxi driver who transported them to the lodge, H-Metro has reported.
One 19-year-old student is currently in police custody assisting with investigations, while the three girls underwent medical examinations before being released to their parents. Investigations indicate that at least one of the girls may have engaged in sexual intercourse.
Police have already arrested Christabel Muchemwa, a 36-year-old employee of the Royal Guest Lodge, for allowing the underage students to book rooms. This highlights a critical lapse in the lodge’s responsibility to verify the ages of its guests.
The principal of one of the colleges issued a statement addressing the situation, emphasizing the emotional toll on the parents and clarifying the school’s position.
“They (parents) are heart-broken but it has to be reiterated that it’s neither their fault nor ours that this happened. The children did not escape from the college premises and so they were not in our jurisdiction. They actually left their homes purporting to be attending school, which in our case begins at 7:30am. Unbeknown to us all, they had other plans and we were to later learn the whole episode had been orchestrated by a 19-year-old Pathway College scholar, in cahoots with two other compatriots, who attend the same school. Naturally, this trio becomes the accused because they paid the lodge fees.”
The principal also highlighted the role of the whistleblower, the former head boy turned taxi driver.
“The shenanigans were exposed by the taxi driver who happens to have been a former head boy at one of the schools. After he had dropped them at the lodge, he rushed to notify us of the development because as a former student of ours, he is privy to our time tables and disciplinary ethos. Because we understood we had no right to budge into the lodge to extract our children, and in respect of the law and for fear of dragging our brand into disrepute, we decided to notify the police first.
“In other words we avoided taking a position we would have later regretted and we put the protection, safety and future of our girls first, while our brand only came second. We are happy the police’s response was prompt and a raid was conducted leading to the arrest of an employee of the lodge. I want to dismiss reports doing rounds on social media that this was a sex party…even the ZRP on its X handle never mentioned the names of our schools for purposes of protecting the children.”
The principal expressed concern over the media frenzy surrounding the incident and its potential impact on the students.
“To our surprise, it’s now in the public domain who we are and who they may be. This is against both the constitution of our country and the Education Act which both speak to the protection of children. It’s unfortunate the media has gone into a frenzy and the matter has been so popularised it’s a discussion you’d find during meal time and everywhere.”
The principal also called for a shift in focus from sensationalism to addressing the larger societal issues at play, particularly the pervasive drug problem affecting schools and communities.
Meanwhile, the parents of the students are scheduled to attend a trauma-healing counselling session today. Sources indicate that organisations specialising in such services have been engaged to provide support.
Furthermore, plans are underway for a public awareness campaign aimed at preventing similar incidents by discouraging lodges from accepting bookings from underage clients.
