Online Reporter
Trust Freddy
Herald Correspondent
SOME Harare City Council officials have been accused of enabling the illegal erection of over 5 000 billboards, with owners of a mere 187 billboards paying their dues.
This has caused significant revenue shortfalls for the city while some officials collect bribes to do nothing to enforce the law.
This came out on Sunday when the Parliamentary Portfolio on Public Accounts Committee met the City of Harare leadership, including mayor Councillor Jacob Mafume, to discuss the value for money audit report on nine local authorities recently conducted by the Auditor General.
Giving a summary of yesterday’s meeting, Public Accounts Committee Chairperson Mr Charlton Hwende said the meeting exposed officials’ involvement in the mushrooming of illegal billboards.
“The City of Harare is only collecting fees from 187 legal billboards, while 5 000 billboards are illegal, generating no revenue for the city,” he said.
“When questioned about measures to recover lost revenue, officials claimed they lacked a crane to remove illegal billboards.
“It was later revealed that some officials operate these illegal billboards, privately collecting money for themselves, which explains their reluctance to enforce compliance.”
Mr Hwende said the audit exposed significant mismanagement and corruption, adding that there was an urgent need for corrective action.
The cash-strapped City Council has not been getting any revenue from the billboards for more than 20 years, despite watching its skyline fill up with them.
At the 1 935th ordinary council meeting held recently, Clr Mafume admitted that some people were benefiting while council was bleeding.
Despite the proliferation of billboards across the city, the council has not benefited, mainly due to corruption and mismanagement.
Council could have earned millions of dollars annually from billboard licensing and advertising fees, which are standard sources of income for municipalities worldwide.
These fresh allegations come on the heels of other accusations that the city has failed to crack down on illegal pirate taxis, which are operating with impunity, including near city offices, allegedly due to municipal officers receiving kickbacks.
Harare City’s revenue collection efforts are allegedly hindered by ineffective license fee collection from tuckshops, with reports suggesting officials are benefiting from kickbacks.
