A CHITUNGWIZA family is desperately searching for their 11-year-old son, Tinotenda Purumero, who went missing during last Monday’s fuel price hike protests.
His distraught father Herbert Purumero said he has been frantically searching for him ever since. Speaking from his home in St Mary’s, the father of four was beside himself with worry.
“If anyone has seen him or knows what happened to Tinotenda on that day, please, let us know,” he said.
Tinotenda’s grandmother said the family was still in shock over his disappearance.
“He woke up on Monday and I gave him clean clothes to wear, but when he saw the crowds passing by, he gave me the slip and followed. I only realised later that he had gone to the shops where all the chaos was,” she said.
Gogo Purumero went around asking neighbours and friends if anyone had seen him, but no one had information on his whereabouts.
“He never came back. He is so young and my biggest concern is that he suffers from seizures and that makes it worse. He is out there somewhere alone,” she said, weeping.
Tinotenda’s father said he had gone to Ruwa for a project when it happened.
“When I arrived from Ruwa around 3pm, my mother (Gogo Purumero) told me that my son had not returned home,” he said.
Purumero braved the tense political situation at the shops and decided to go to look for his son, accompanied by a nephew.
