In an incident that left employees and passengers’ shell- shocked a bus driver went berserk and assaulted a Zupco depot manager with fists before he violently pushed him to the ground.
The dramatic incident happened last Sunday at around 2pm at Zupco Khami Road depot in Bulawayo.
According to a source who declined to be named in fear of reprisals, Mehlokazulu Ndlovu (33), a bus driver went to the depot intending to refuel his vehicle.
When he arrived at the depot, he went straight to the manager Blessing Chikowore.
“He asked to refuel his bus but the manager told him that the fuel which was allocated to him should not have been used up as such he was supposed to do more trips which were proportionate to the amount of fuel that was allocated to him the previous day,” said the source.
This did not go down well with Ndlovu as a result a misunderstanding ensued between the two. The source said Ndlovu turned his boss into a punching bag.
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“He punched him several times in the face. He bled profusely from the nose.
“The fists were too fast for him as a result he fell down. It had to take the intervention of another employee who restrained the marauding Ndlovu who was all over his manager,” said the source.
The manager, the source said, sustained injuries on the face.
A report was made at Mzilikazi Police Station leading to the arrest of Ndlovu. Chikowore was then rushed to a hospital.
Bulawayo police spokesperson Inspector Abednico Ncube confirmed the incident: “We would like to discourage members of the public to shun resorting to violence in an attempt to solve a misunderstanding. Violence has proved it leads to injury and sometimes loss of an innocent life.
“We therefore implore members of the public to engage third parties like public relations officers, human resources managers or counsellors so as to solve differences that could have arisen in the company,” he said.
Contacted for comment Mehlokazulu’s boss Thandolwenkosi Hlabangana said: “It was unfortunate but we are happy that the matter has been settled.”
Efforts to get a comment from Chikowore were fruitless.
-bmetro
