GWERU – Police fired teargas during a second day of clashes with street vendors in the Midland city of Gweru on Tuesday.

The unlicenced traders pelted police with stones while resisting arrest, forcing them to beat a hasty retreat before returning with reinforcements.

Police are under orders from the Joint Operations Command, chaired by the military, to clear the vendors from the streets over fears that their activities are behind an outbreak of typhoid which has killed at least 10 people.

The vendors are defying the order to close shop, preferring to play cat and mouse with the police who were backed by security guards from the Gweru City Council.

Monday witnessed isolated clashes between the two sides as enforcement was also minimal, before all hell broke loose on Tuesday when vendors trading just outside Pick n Pay Supermarket resisted eviction by the police.

The area has seen past clashes between vendors and the police.

The street traders ganged up on the riot police numbering about 15 officers, throwing stones and bricks at them with pedestrians being caught up in the crossfire.

The police had to flee the scene in a council vehicle, with vendors whistling threateningly and advancing, some hurling insults at the police.

Tear gas had to be fired at the corner of OK Supermarket to disperse the pursuing vendors who continued throwing stones at the police.

The departure of the truck saw the noise dying down before the police returned with reinforcements, with two more truckloads of officers. They also brought a council tractor and trailer to load confiscated goods.

Several illegal vending stalls that had been erected along the pavements were confiscated together with some wares.

The streets were momentarily cleared but the vendors returned as soon as the trucks left the CBD.

Vendor and police clashes are not new in Gweru as the council has been trying to sanitise the streets since 2016 with no success.

Council finally gave up the efforts and sought the services of the ZRP who are currently assisting with the evictions but facing serious resistance from the desperate vendors.

Vendor representative Lovemore ‘Dingaka’ Reketayi said rogue and illegal vendors without licenses are the ones who are causing chaos and physically resisting the ZRP and council police.

“People should not get us wrong we are not tolerating any violence or protecting any law-breaking vendors, most of whom are not registered anyway,” he said.

“We know that council has all the power to force us to move, but we are saying as a vendors association we want engagement with council on issues affecting us.”

Some of the vendors accused the council of giving them a raw deal as they are made to pay for vending space year in and year out but have never been shown their designated areas hence resort to street pavements.

The vendors also say claims that they are spreading the typhoid are unproven. Most of the city believes the typhoid, concentrated in Mkoba, is caused by leaky water and sewer pipes exchanging cargo.