The Sunday Mail
The country is currently grappling with the issue of the influx of vendors into central business district, which has brought about anarchy within the city of Harare. Concerned citizens are calling for the responsible authorities to immediately restore sanity and relocate these informal traders to Council designated points to ease the flow of human traffic within the confines of the city – Picture: Believe Nyakudjara
THERE is a filthy situation as far as service delivery by the Harare City Council (HCC) is concerned.
While recent media reports claim that the HCC blames poor service delivery on residents who are not paying their dues, residents in turn claim that even when they meet their obligations, the authorities do not deliver their promises. It really becomes difficult to know who is telling the truth.
But why can’t the City of Harare simply publish its audited financial statements in the newspapers? Residents really deserve to know how their hard-earned money is being spent.
Over the years, there has been so much talk but very little progress.
Harare dreams “to achieve a world class City status by 2025” and its mission statement is unequivocal: “We are committed to providing first class service and promoting a conducive environment for investment through stakeholder participation and a high performance team.”
In addition, its purported corporate values include commitment, truthfulness, integrity, trust and authenticity.
If one interrogates all these statements with what is really happening on the ground, it becomes difficult to resist the assertion that they are all a high sounding big joke.
Experiences of ordinary ratepayers have really been nasty.
Residents expect to get clean water from their taps at all times; to drive cars on roads that are safe and well maintained – night driving should not be a nightmare as is the current case since most of the streetlights are not working.
Pavements and streets, particularly in the Central Business District (CBD), should be orderly: Vendors should trade at designated places and by-laws should be sacrosanct.
Residents have got expectations – garbage should be collected regularly and consistently, actual meter readings should be billed to customers and faults should be attended to timeously.
If the normally long meetings at Town House do not dwell on these pressing issues, then they are a sheer waste of time. The City of Harare should have a clear strategy and implementation plan on how to tackle these ever-growing problems. Currently, most residents, including HCC employees, rely on borehole and mineral water. Most people do not feel safe drinking tap water, and understandably so.
There are countless residents who have had their cars damaged on the City’s poor roads.
Most vehicles’ tyres and suspension systems are really battered.
Put simply, the roads in Harare are terrible. The worst affected high density suburbs are Budiriro, Glen View, Glen Norah and Mufakose, just to mention a few. Something urgent needs to be done. The roads have been deteriorating and continue to deteriorate.
Streetlights
Streetlights have also been left to rot, and some poles are now posing a danger to both motorists and pedestrians.
Only a few streetlights are in good working condition.
When a light develops a fault it has to be fixed on time.
Instructively, some countries have since moved to LED lights that consume less power than the ordinary streetlights that continue to be used in the capital.
The progress on Airport road, however, gives hope.
Vendors
The issue of vendors has become topical of late. The street pavements, which are overcrowded with vendors, have become an eyesore.
The scourge is now spreading to some medium and low density suburbs such as Westgate, Marlborough and Borrowdale. Illegal businesses like tuck shops, tyre services and car wash services are sprouting at an alarming rate. Where are the inspectors and authorities when such things are happening? Is this the world class city status we want to achieve by 2025? When will action to address these problems start?
Yes, people deserve to make a living but this needs to be done within the confines of the law of the land.
Refuse collection
The erratic manner in which refuse is collected by the city council is a case for concern. Most often than not, residents end up dumping trash anywhere and everywhere. It all has implications on public health. But this service is consistently billed.
Then there is a sickening practice where the City of Harare now regularly sends estimated bills, which clearly are inaccurate most of the time.
What irks many is that while the city cannot afford to send meter readers, it can, however, send its staff to shut down its services.h the City of Harare.
City fathers clearly need to change the way they do business.
Taurai Changwa is an Articled Accountant and ACCA finalist. He is managing director of SAFIC Consultancy. He writes in his personal capacity and can be contacted at [email protected], on SAFIC Consultancy facebook page or whatsapp on 0772374784.
