Students abandon classes for gold
By Ronny Zikhali

Reports of the discovery of gold in Gutu, south west of Bulawayo has caused a renewed scramble for the precious mineral, amid reports that students from the nearby schools in the area are abandoning classes for the search for gold.
Sources said the students were running away from school to take to the pick and shovel business which has made some residents rich overnight.
“We are very much worried that our children are abandoning school for gold panning. Our concern is that of behaviour change. That our children’s behaviour are going to be painted to that of the mischievous gold panners . We have heard of course that the gold panning activities have in some areas brought so much wealth to the lucky ones but as parents we continue to urge our school going children to complete school first,” said a villager Mrs Joyleene Musasa.
She said there were reports of violence where villagers of the local community were reportedly chasing away people from other areas adding that fears were that their young school going children could easily become victims of the reported violence.
Musasa added that the gold panning activities were further bringing a lot of degradation of the environment in the area and urged the responsible authorities to urgently look into the issues to ensure the correct people do the mining using the legal methods.
An officer with the Environmental Management Agency in the district told the Sunday News that the resurfacing of the illegal gold panning activities spelt yet another damage not only to the environment but the communities’ livestock as well.
“The resurfacing of the illegal gold panning activities in the Zoma area does not only spell doom to the environment but to the lives of people and livestock. It also means people will be left with no land to do agriculture activities as the gold panning activities are encroaching into the fields and areas of human habitation,” said the officer who declined to be named.
Gutu West Member of Parliament Noel Mandebvu confirmed the gold rush in the area and said the mineral had always been detected in Gutu sometime back but the mine was abandoned after claims that the mineral had been exhausted.
“The gold has always been there in the Zoma area in Gutu where there has been a mine but was later abandoned after the former foreign miners claimed the mineral has been exhausted. But I understand some miners bought the claims there,” said Mandebvu.
Minister of Mines and Mining Development Obert Mpofu said his ministry would sent experts to investigate the availability of the mineral so that if there was need for large scale mining the Government would then move in.