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Remember Deketeke Herald Correspondent
Scores of disgruntled residents of Budiriro, Harare, yesterday demonstrated at the Harare City Council office in Budiriro I Shopping Centre in Ward 13 demanding an end to sub par refuse collection and the continual burning of rubbish near the suburb.
A foul stench from a burning disposal site close to the neighbourhood angered the demonstrators. Despite numerous calls to the councils’ offices and the Environmental Management Agency since last month, nothing has been done, with most of the residents wearing face masks to shield themselves from potentially toxic fumes.
Ms Esther Kwembeya, a resident and businessperson, said the amount of smoke in the area compelled her to relocate her mother and children to a safer area.
“My mother lives down the line less than 20 meters, and I had to make her move to my sister’s place because of the smoke we are inhaling in our houses and I also sent away my children,” she said. Despite much effort by residents in seeking help from the council, Ms Kwembeya said nothing has changed for the past month.“We went to the councillors and we also went to the district office last month but nothing came out of it and now we do not have anywhere else to go to. We called our counsellor of Ward 33 and he said we were irritating him, so where can we cry to,” she said. Ms Kwembeya said most patrons who used to frequent her beerhall had stopped as a result of the smoke and fumes.
Additionally, many residents, and even council employees, were the ones dumping garbage and burning it at the dump site.
“My current challenge is that I am losing business as a result of the flies, smoke and stench emanating from the dump site which has made many of my customers have fled. Individuals travel great distances only to dispose of their waste here; occasionally, some of them, including council members, come and light up the disposal site,” she said.
Mr Gideon Mutyauripo said the people of Budiriro Ward 33 voted for the wrong man.
“We are all crying now because some residents chose Mr Emmanuel Dzinomurumbi, as our councillor, instead of the right person. We are pleading with the central Government to help us and hold new elections if they approve,” he said.
Stanley Gama, Head of Corporate Communications City of Harare, said it is important for residents to dump waste at designated areas.
“People need to know that during Chenesa Harare, we took care to remove all illegal dumping sites and clean up the surrounding areas to prevent future illegal waste dumping at illegal sites,” he said. “We arrived at the Budiriro 1 shopping centre dumping site first, and although the fire department made a tremendous effort, they were unable to put out the fire because the smoke was still visible. Since there were signs of fire at the disposal site, this rendered it impossible for the council to collect waste,” he said.
Mr Gama said he would investigate the tractors that Budiriro 1 received, which were designed to speed up service delivery.
“To improve service delivery in Harare, I will inquire about the status of the tractors that were delivered and see what transpired with the one that was given to Budiriro 1,” he said.
Online Reporter