By Engineer Jacob Kudzai Mutisi
I remember the landmark case of former Stanbic Bank executive Pindie Nyandoro, who successfully sued the City of Harare after her Mercedes-Benz was damaged by a pothole on Enterprise Road.
Her case became a symbol of citizen accountability and established that local authorities could be held liable for negligence when they fail to maintain public infrastructure. If a damaged vehicle justified legal action, what should happen when negligence allegedly contributes to the loss of human life?
The tragedy in Budiriro, where three people reportedly died after falling into a water-filled excavation pit at a City of Harare sewer rehabilitation site, has shocked the nation. Residents have raised questions about safety measures, warning signs, barricades and accountability. While investigations may ultimately determine the exact circumstances, the public debate has already exposed a deeper concern, why are Zimbabweans increasingly accepting avoidable tragedies without demanding accountability?
This is not a country without legal precedent. Over the years, courts have ordered compensation where council negligence caused injuries, property damage and other losses. Motorists have sued over dangerous trenches and potholes, injured residents have received compensation for unsafe public infrastructure and courts have repeatedly recognised that local authorities owe a duty of care to the public.
The question therefore is not whether legal remedies exist. The question is whether citizens are willing to pursue them.
Where are the human rights lawyers? Where are the public interest litigators? Where are the civic organisations that should be standing beside grieving families and helping them seek justice? Human rights are not limited to freedom of speech and political rights. The right to life, safety and protection from preventable harm are equally important.
Perhaps the bigger concern is what has happened to us as a people. Have we become so accustomed to poor service delivery, open trenches, collapsing infrastructure and dangerous roads that we now regard them as normal? Have we lowered our expectations to the point where preventable deaths are met with sympathy instead of demands for accountability?
A functioning society is not measured by how it responds to success but by how it responds to failure. When negligence causes harm, accountability must follow. Otherwise, tragedies become statistics and statistics become forgotten.
The families who lost their loved ones deserve condolences. They also deserve answers. And if negligence is proven, they deserve justice.
Zimbabweans once used the courts to challenge a pothole that damaged a car. Surely the loss of human life should provoke an even stronger demand for accountability.