adminRunesu Gwidi Masvingo Correspondent
Mpandawana Town Board has been challenged by residents to channel resources towards rehabilitation of roads in the town and surrounding areas, as most of them are in a state of disrepair due to the rains. Residents and ratepayers in the town want the town board to source more funds to complement the allocations from the Zimbabwe National Roads Administration (ZINARA), which recently released only $23 000 for road rehabilitation at Mpandawana.
Gutu Apex, which is a mother association comprising of five residents and ratepayers associations, said the money released by ZINARA was not enough to upgrade the road network.
Gutu Apex chairman Mr Simbarashe Tarugarira yesterday warned the town board against piecemeal approaches to road rehabilitation.
“As ratepayers, we do not expect half-baked solutions to a problem of such a higher magnitude,” he said.
“We are concerned by the proliferation of potholes on our roads and the patching, which is being done by council, is akin to trying to cure a symptom instead of the actual disease.”
Mr Tarugarira said ZINARA was supposed to increase allocations for road maintenance to local authorities, particularly those covering rural areas.
“We want to applaud Gutu Rural District Council for raising an additional $88 000 for road patching purposes, but our thinking is that patching is not the solution, our road network requires a complete overhaul,” he said.
Mr Tarugarira said his organisation was planning to petition the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Transport and Infrastructure Development over the state of the roads at Mpandawana.
He said they wanted the committee to embark on a fact-finding mission on the state of roads at Mpandawana and Gutu district.
Gutu RDC Road Works and Planning Committee has already expressed concern over the dilapidated state of roads in the district and was contemplating appealing to the Ministry of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing for funding to overhaul the road network.
Online Reporter