Mkoba South MP Demands Urgent State Assistance for Mentally Ill Persons

Harare - Mkoba South legislator, John Kuka, has intensified calls for urgent government intervention to protect and rehabilitate mentally challenged persons living on the streets, warning Parliament that vulnerable citizens are dying due to neglect and violence.

Raising the issue in the National Assembly, Honourable Kuka asked the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare to outline the Government’s policy for assisting mentally ill individuals who have resorted to living on the streets.

He also sought clarity on measures to shield them from attacks and prevent situations where they may unintentionally endanger the public.

Responding on behalf of the Ministry, Deputy Minister Mercy Dinha said Government policy, guided by the Mental Health Act and the National Mental Health Policy, prioritises community-based care, rehabilitation, rights protection and coordinated responses involving health professionals, social services, local authorities and non-governmental organisations.

She told the House that outreach teams identify people living on the streets with mental health needs, conduct assessments, facilitate referrals for treatment, provide temporary shelter and psychosocial support and undertake family tracing and voluntary reunification where possible.

She added that Government works with law enforcement and councils to ensure responses are therapeutic rather than punitive.

Hon. Kuka however challenged the effectiveness of these measures on the ground, particularly in Mkoba South Constituency.

“What you have answered on paper is true,” he said, “but in Mkoba South, we have for a long time seen people with mental issues living at certain places without assistance. When are you going to start implementing what you are saying here?”

The legislator’s concerns come against the backdrop of a tragic incident that shook the Mkoba community last year.

On November 29, 2025, a mentally disturbed man known as Danny was fatally stabbed at Mkoba 6 Shopping Centre in Gweru.

Danny, a resident of Mkoba and a familiar figure at the shopping centre where he spent most of his time, was described by residents as peaceful and calm despite his mental condition.

A devoted member of the Roman Catholic Church’s St Paul’s Parish in Mkoba, Danny’s death sparked outrage and grief in the community.

At the time, Hon. Kuka strongly condemned the killing and called on police to bring the perpetrator to justice.

“We are shocked and saddened by this brutal act of violence. We urge the police to leave no stone unturned in bringing the perpetrator to justice,” he said at the time.

In Parliament this week, the MP said such incidents demonstrate the urgent need for visible, coordinated and sustained intervention.

Deputy Minister Dinha urged legislators to formally notify provincial and district social welfare officers when such cases arise, saying government teams are available but may not always be alerted to specific hotspots.

The exchange has reignited debate over the growing number of mentally ill individuals visible in urban centres such as Gweru, with communities calling for concrete action beyond policy pronouncements.

For Hon. Kuka, the issue is not merely administrative but humanitarian. “These people with mental challenges are just people like us,” he told the House, emphasizing that the right to dignity, protection and care must extend to society’s most vulnerable.