By Brighton Chiseva
MASVINGO City residents are up in arms with council over the local authority’s decision to allow only residents whose banking details match with the account being paid for to use swipe or bank transfer when paying rates.
Residents interpreted the move as an indirect way of demanding USD payments by council, as tenants and other residents whose details are not on the properties they have to pay for cannot use either bank transfers or swipe to pay council rates.
The local authority issued a statement on September 18 advising residents that only those with matching details on both property and bank details will be allowed to use the platform.
“Masvingo City Council would like to notify its clients that for payments to be made via swipe cards and transfers, the details of the paying bank card/account should match those of the account to be paid /settled. This is in line with the Monetary Authorities’ regulations,” read the statement.
There is no policy however which states this as claimed by the city council.
Masvingo United Residents and Ratepayers Association Director Anozivaishe Muguti said as residents they were not going to allow council to bully them, urging the local authority to reconsider its decision or see residents boycotting the payment of bills.
“We, as residents, are deeply concerned and disappointed by the city council’s sudden decision to refuse payment of rates and bills using bank cards not bearing the same name as that on their accounts. This move unfairly restricts our payment options, causing unnecessary hardship.
“The decision is unacceptable, inconvenient, and unjust, lacking any legal basis. We urge the council to reconsider. If not, we may consider a payment boycott. We demand transparency, flexibility, and accountability,” said Muguti.
Disability rights activist Henry Chivhanga said the policy was discriminatory as some disabled people who could not work rely on other people to pay the bills.
He said though Council would want to preserve value, it was not a monetary authority and was thereby usurping the powers of the Reserve Bank and the Ministry of Finance.
“Council seems to have taken the role of the police and the judiciary to allege, arrest and convict residents on suspicion of being money changers.
Now the effects are that persons with disabilities and pensioners who rely on well-wishers and relatives will have water disconnected. It will be tricky for residents who rent houses because it is a norm that such tenants pay for their water. This will result in low cash inflows to Council,” said Chivhanga.
He went on to say council should rescind the decision until after consultations and council should find other means to persuade residents to pay bills.
“We love our City and we have entrusted our councilors to run this City on our behalf. That trust is critical and we cannot afford to waste it. I for one would encourage other residents to support our Council as long as it is sensitive to our challenges,” said Chivhanga.
He went on to castigate councilors and warned residents to see what was happening and decide who to elect next time as the current crop of councilors were after their own benefits.
Contacted for comment, Masvingo City Mayor Councilor Alec Tabe said through the move, council wanted to control illegal moneychangers who were now in the habit of camping near council offices swiping for people to get USD.
He went on to say they were not banning the use of swipe but will not allow a single card to pay for multiple houses.
“We are trying to guard against money changers who at times camp near council offices paying for people and getting USD. This deprives council of the much needed cash to get critical requirements for service delivery since most of the things are paid for in USD.
“So residents are allowed to use swipe cards but what we do not want is for one card to swipe for multiple households. One card should swipe for only one household,” Tabe said.
