Another Harare blitz in the works

Lisa Mandewo
The Harare City Council will not backtrack on implementing its master plan to decongest the central business district, with authorities expected to conduct a blitz in this context next month.

The Sunday Mail has gathered that authorities are regrouping after a recent bid to ban commuter omnibuses from the city centre and restrict vendors to designated sites ended in chaos, as police fired shots on demonstrators resulting in two deaths.

Angry residents hit back by destroying property.

According to the master plan, Harare wants to open termini and vending market stalls at the periphery of the CBD by April.

In an interview last week, Harare mayor councillor Bernard Manyenyeni said, “We hope to have completed construction of the new structures end of April and commuter omnibuses will move to the site.

“The review of the CBD local development plan number 22 is part of the bigger picture to decongest the CBD.

“We hope big wholesalers will move out of the CBD while single storey buildings will be revamped into multi storey structures with enough parking space.”

Harare has set itself an ambitious target to be a world class city by 2025.

City spokesperson Mr Michael Chideme said that the process of developing the city had began.

“We have initiated the process as part of our rapid results initiative on the 100-day programme, and we are guided by the local development plan number 22. We believe that there is going to be great development within the CBD; we want it to be an A-class city,” he said.