TellZim Reporter

CHIPINGE— Chibuwe High School
head walked from a car accident with minor injuries after the school minibus he
was driving while being towed overturned and landed on the side.

The
accident happened at around midnight on November 30 while school head Gift
Dhliwayo was coming from Checheche where he had attended a school heads meeting
in preparation for the 2020 Zimsec exams.

School
Development Committee (SDC) chairperson Innocent Mlilo told TellZim News that
the school minibus blew its head gasket and Dhliwayo called in for a recovery
and one Mtisi, a school teacher, is said to have gone to the rescue using his
personal car.

“The
head had gone for a meeting at Checheche in preparation for the Zimsec
examinations in the face of Covid-19. 

“The
meeting ended late and the head, who was carrying day old chicks, decided to
return to school. The school mini bus developed faults and it blew its head
gasket along the way.

“Another
school teacher (Mtisi) went to the rescue and towed the mini bus with his
personal car,” said Mlilo.

He said
while on the way, Mtisi’s car tried to avoid hitting a herd of cattle which was
in the middle of the road and swerved off road dragging the minibus with it.

“While
the minibus was being towed, there was a herd of cattle in the middle of the
road and Mtisi tried to avoid hitting the cattle and veered off the road.

“Unfortunately
the minibus which was being towed overturned and landed on its side. The minibus
did not suffer any extensive damages from the accident other than shattered
front and rear wind shields as well as side windows.

“The
head escaped with minor injuries,” said Mlilo.

He said
he informed parents about the accident and went to get the police to attend to
the scene.

City of Masvingo mayor Collen Maboke

 …gives 14 days ultimatum

Upenyu Chaota

The
cash strapped City of Masvingo has given the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) a
14 days ultimatum to settle their debt amounting to $10 709 881,22 as at
October 31, 2020 failure of which the local authority would hand over the
matter to debt collectors.

The
ultimatum was given during the Finance and General Purpose Committee meeting
held on November 23, 2020 after noting that the police had not been forthcoming
in paying their water bills.

Minutes
from the meeting indicate that the police have been deaf to various calls by
the local authority to settle their water bills or commit to a payment plan.

“On
institutional debtors it was reported that the Zimbabwe Republic Police had not
been forthcoming in paying their water bills and debts amounting to $10 709
881,22 as at October 31, 2020 despite various engagements.

“The
Finance director was instructed to formally advise the ZRP to settle their
debts within fourteen days failure of which the council would hand them over
for debt collection,” read the minutes.

The 14
days ultimatum lapses on December 7, 2020.

Council
is owed in excess of $130 million with the police, army and prisons topping the
list of heavy debtors.

The
army and prisons are said to be committing to payment plans to settle their
debts but the police has remained stubborn though receiving uninterrupted
services.

Of the
$131,2 million total debt owed to the city council, residential areas owe a
combined 45 percent, institutions owe 43 percent and the Central Business
District (CBD) owe 12 percent.

In
their 2021 budget proposal, the city council says that the ballooning debt of
$131,2 million against an opening balance of $50,4 million was exacerbated by
the Covid-19 pandemic that eroded the residents’ and businesses’ ability to
generate income.

City of
Masvingo mayor Collen Maboke and Town Clerk Edward Mukaratirwa could not be
drawn into comment as they told TellZim News that they were in a meeting.

Acting Masvingo
provincial police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Kudakwashe Dhewa said that
they are unaware of any ultimatum.

City of Mutare mayor Blessing Tandi

TellZim Reporter

Residents
from Mutare have commented the city council for improvements made in the
provision of services under the obtaining economic situation saying water
provision and refuse collection have seen remarkable improvements.

Engaging
in the TellZim News Mutare WhatsApp platform, residents applauded the local
authority for making concerted efforts to ensure the provision of water to most
residential areas, though erratic to some, was guaranteed.

“Whilst
there is still a lot more that needs to be done, the state of service delivery
in Mutare has improved

“Especially
routine collection of refuse in suburbs and the Central Business District (CBD),”
wrote one resident.

Another
resident said that refuse collection from his area is being done every Tuesday
and tap water is provided on daily basis commenting the local authority for
giving an ear and feedback to residents.

“Very
true, Mutare is way better than other cities in the country. I stay in Sakubva
and refuse collection is on point. Water is always available and when there is
a fault which will see water cutoffs they always communicate.

“Evert Tuesday
our bins are collected and also vanhu veku Council are now attending meetings
and answering questions from residents,” another resident concurred.

Residents
agreed that there are some improvements which needs to be done but the council
was heading in the right direction.

“There
has been a marked improvement, you no longer see heaps of rubbish in the
streets. As I said there is a lot that needs to be done for instance street
lighting is poor in Sakubva.

“Sanitation
for ablutions in council leased properties is still something that needs to be
addressed, but kana pane chagonekwa we comment anticipating continued service
delivery improvements,” said one resident.

The
discussions were initiated after City of Mutare spokesperson Spren Mutiwi
updated members on the Multi City Challenge Africa competitions which the local
authority is participating in.

Residents
also called on the local authority to attend to the road infrastructure which
they say is now in a terrible state.

Most
local authorities across the country have been struggling to maintain their
roads as the Zimbabwe National Roads Administration (Zinara) has not been
forthcoming with local authority money allocations.

City of Mutare mayor Blessing Tandi

TellZim Reporter

With
most local authorities across the country adjusting their tariffs to the
prevailing economic conditions, the local businesses here have registered their
displeasure over the tariff increase by the City of Mutare which they say are
prohibitive.

City of
Mutare is said to have hiked shop licensing tariffs from US$450 to US$1 900 or
the equivalent in local currency depending on the size of business.

Business
owners who spoke to TellZim News said that the tariffs were prohibitive and the
council did not do proper consultations before adjusting their rates.

“We
know the economy is bad but why should we squeeze and push each other out of
business like this? We are all affected by the economy especially coming from
the Covid-19 lockdown and we have to meet halfway.

“What
justification do they have to hike licenses like that? What informed the hike?
We were never consulted and we are struggling just like everyone else.

“It is
no longer a viable option if the council charges us those exorbitant fees
without putting into consideration the fact that we have other bills to pay
including salaries for our staff,” said one businessman who operates a
furniture shop in the Central Business District (CBD).

He said
shop owners in Mutare wrote a petition to the city council a few months back
seeking redress but the petition was never addressed.

City of
Mutare spokesperson Spren Mutiwi told TellZim News that the tariff review were
done after the supplementary budget was approved and most businesses who had
not paid their shop licenses in time were the ones complaining.

“I am
not privy to the actual figures but the problem is that most businesses failed
to pay their licenses before the supplementary budget this year where the
reviews were made.

“Businesses
who paid their licenses before the supplementary budget have no problems
because the rates were still in local currency and had not been reviewed.

“The
supplementary budget made the reviews and pegged the fees in United States
dollars or equivalent in local currency,” said Mutiwi.

He said
the tariffs were fair to small businesses as people were now paying depending
with the size of their businesses.

“Big
businesses now pay more as opposed to the old norm where we had a one size fit
all approach. There is a distinction between small and big businesses now as we
are charging the tariffs per square meter,” said Mutiwi.