HARARE, Nov. 8 -- Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa on Thursday sent a message of condolences following the death of 47 people in a bus accident along the Harare-Mutare highway on Wednesday.
The president said in view of the magnitude of the loss of human life in one of the worst road accidents in recent months, he had instructed the responsible ministry to take necessary steps to declare the accident a national disaster.
He said the death of such a high number of people in a single traffic incident raises serious questions about the behavior on the country's roads.
"The use of vehicles that are not roadworthy, or drivers who do not seem to care for passenger safety, amount to a criminal breach of trust between bus operators and the paying commuters who expect and deserve safe transit," the president said.
The accident, which also left 70 others injured, occurred when two long-distance buses collided on the busy highway.
Road accidents, especially involving public passenger buses and commuter omnibuses, are a common feature in Zimbabwe's dilapidated roads with police attributing most of the accidents to speeding.