…As partisan political battles rips into GCC’s service delivery
Tinaani Nyabereka
GWERU-The mishap affecting Gweru City Council’s service provision system has greatly been attributed to failure by residents and office bearers to separate politics from development.
This was said by a council official during a Gweru Residents and Ratepayers Development Association’s Social Accountability and Monitoring engagement held this on October 9, 2022 in Gweru.
Speaking at the event, Gweru ward 18 councillor who is also the chairperson for the Environment Committee John Manyundwa said the polarised and toxic political environment was greatly hindering development as people are more centred on politics than development.
“The problem we have is that our communities are failing to separate politics from development as much priority is given to politics rather than developing our constituencies.
“As a result people don’t attend ward meetings or consultations because they first look to see if the councillor is their political candidate. No matter how you call for a meeting, people don’t come because of political affiliation of some councillors,” said Manyundwa.
He added that the on-going political in-fights between MDC-T and CCC parties within the council are a major contributor to poor service provision as councillors are divided.
“We cannot dismiss that council is bound with political rifts as city fathers are prioritizing political allegiance than residents’ concerns. This was further worsened by the paradigm shift of power due to the recalls which affected office bearers.
“The first issue of concern is politics; we are no longer on the same page as we used to be when we took over in 2018. The split of MDC-Alliance and the formation of Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) has created confusion at council as councillors are now focused more into political groupings and allegiances than service provision.
“On the other hand, council management let me say, is taking advantage of the political infighting between councillors and now using the situation to avoid implementation of other policies. There is conflicting between councillors and management hence it has becomes difficult to provide services to residents,” he added.
Gweru Residents and Ratepayers Association (GRRA) director Conilia Selipiwe said residents are frustrated over the condition of service provision in the city.
“There is anger among residents and stakeholders of Gweru, we have erratic supply of water supply, non-collection of refuse, damaged roads, derelict recreational facilities, bad public lighting as well as persistent sewer blockages that are not timeously attended to in all wards.
“As councillors, you must find a way of resolving the challenges affecting the city of progress. The collapsed social contract between council and its stakeholders negatively affects service delivery,” said Selipiwe.
He however urged residents to be problem-solvers as in their communities as service delivery issues require an all stakeholder approach.
People with Disabilities Advocate Nigel Tahwa however urged Gweru city fathers to come up with effective engagement methods to cater for the disability sector in decision making processes.