The decision by the Zimbabwe Open University (ZOU) to turn Chinhoyi Training Centre — used as a COVID-19 quarantine centre — into one of its examination centres has not gone down well with students.
Students who spoke to NewsDay on Wednesday said that they were not comfortable with the arrangement as it exposed them to contracting coronavirus.
Reports indicate that 23 returnees were still housed at the centre.
However, ZOU acting spokesperson Stewart Mandiwanza said students were not at risk to COVID-19 infection as the building housing the quarantine inmates was about 100 metres away from the examination rooms. He said:
Among the many buildings that are there, it is true that one of them is being used as COVID-19 quarantine centre.
However, it is important to note that the building that we are using as an examination venue is far away, about 100 metres from the one used as a quarantine centre.
The quarantine centre is guarded by police and there are some demarcations such that students writing examinations and those in quarantine will not mix easily.
It is also important to note that the university took great strides to consult and engage with relevant key stakeholders in view of how lethal COVID-19 disease is.
