Harare’s is not just Zimbabwe’s official capital city, but can easily also pass for the country’s rumour capital. Many an urban legend has come out of the the city’s ever active rumour mill, with most being proven beyond any reasonable doubt to be just that, urban legend.
The city that doesn’t sleep’s rumour mill was at it again this past week. The top trend on social media was the talk of a “Kwame Mall video tape”, also referred to by some as “video tape rekwaMemo”.
What began as a random rumour post on Twitter quicky caught fire and dominated conversation on various Social Media platforms, with just about everyone requesting to see the now infamous rumoured video tape of people in a compromising position, reportedly record inside Kwame Mall.
As the week marched on, there was no kwame mall video tape in sight. Ever innovative Zimbabweans wanting their 15 minutes of fame slot, claimed that they had the video tape with them, but when called to show it, they just couldn’t.
The more “innovative” ones shared old tapes of various people filled in compromising positions, but non held water as most were proven to be old.
Our reporters went to the now “talk of the town” Kwame Mall to investigate and get to the facts.
However, in interviews with various stall owners and traders alike, noone seemed to know about the actual existence of the tape nor the original source of the rumour.
“I know nothing about the video tape, I’ve only heard about it on Social Media” said a lady trader who declined to be named.
“This tape you’re talking about is news to me, I’ve no idea what it is about” said another trader who also declined to be named.
Several other traders who ply their trade in the mall either declined to comment or simply professed ignorance of the tape or the origin and purpose of the rumour.
“I only saw the issue on Social Media just like everyone else. I don’t even know who started the rumour” said another stall owner who also preffered anonymity.
Asked whether business had improved, due to the massive publicity, most traders maintaned that business was as usual, besides having some visitors to the mall enquiring about the “Kwame Mall/KwaMemo” video tap.
Our reporters also interview trader from another mall adjacent to Kwame Mall to get their views on the issue.
Most traders in the adjacent mall were of the opinion that the video tape rumour was nothing more than a marketing gymic by some traders at Kwame Mall.
“I think someone clever at Kwame Mall just decided to start a rumour so as to market the place and it seems to have worked because it’s been trending all week” said Tatenda from Homegate mall.
“Clearly it’s a marketing gymic and it has worked for them” rertoted Chido who also owns a stall at Homegate mall.
So there you have it, dear reader, the Kwame Mall video tape seems by and large to be nothing more than a phantom, a ghost story or urban legend as it were. It does not exist.
We however acknolwedge the brilliance of the creator of this rumour in bringing a buzz and a massive free publicity to Kwame Mall, where many young Zimbabwean enterpreneurs run stalls that sell various goods. This is a clear cut case of “no publicity is bad publicity.”
