Gweru City Council under fire for poor service delivery
Story by Tafara Chikumira
THE opposition-led Gweru City Council has once again come under the spotlight for the wrong reasons after failing to deal with several challenges including waste management and a poor road network.
A combination of a poor road network and uncollected garbage have turned what is supposed to be the City of Progress into an eyesore.
The flow of raw sewer in the face of cholera has also made the situation worse particularly in the western suburbs where residents are now fearing for the worst.
“We are now afraid of contracting the deadly cholera disease especially here in Mambo suburbs. We have endured the site of raw sewer for two weeks and this is not healthy at all,” said one of the locals.
Another added, “For us, the elderly we got better resistance to these waterborne diseases hence our biggest worry is to those children who sometimes play in the sewer.”
“These roads are a real eyesore. The wear and tear is becoming burdensome,” said one of the residents.
The government is equally appalled by the continued poor service delivery in the city.
Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution, Honourable Owen Ncube said, “Residents deserve uninterrupted water supply, good road network and other critical services to promote business development, wellness, unity and peace. I urge local authorities to adhere to SMART CITY principles and urban renewal concept.”
The local authority has cited a lack of critical resources as the reason behind poor service delivery.
Gweru City Council Acting Mayor, Councillor Fortunate Mlambo said, “As a local authority we are aware of the service delivery shortfalls in our city. However, we are doing all we can to address the challenges. Our biggest challenge is the issue of revenue as most residents are failing to pay their bills.”
Meanwhile, Honourable Ncube was also in Kwekwe where he also implored the local authority to prioritise service delivery.
