Chi-Town introduces fines

Talent Gore

CHITUNGWIZA Municipality has introduced penalty fees for those conducting illegal activities such as owning illegal structures and vending in the town.

In a statement, Chitungwiza Municipality said the measures were aimed at implementing development control as well as enforcing by-laws.

The municipality will be towing all vehicles parked at unregistered car parks, as well as enforcing the possession of fire extinguishers by gas and flammable liquids transporters.

There will be the penalisation of borehole drilling without council approval, tempering with water meters, water theft or bypassing the water meter, Illegal water and sewage connections, and damage to council infrastructure.

“In order to bring back sanity in the town, we will be penalising owners of illegal structures, introducing a US$1 per day penalty for all vendors and a US$5 penalty for those selling sofas,” said Chitungwiza Municipality spokesperson, Lovemore Meya.

Meya said implementation of the measures was already in progress.

“We have our teams on the ground making sure that everything is in order. As it stands, we will also be introducing storage fees after an hour of vehicle impounding,” he said.

“We will be demolishing perimeter or boundary walls encroaching original stand pegs and penalising all uninspected perimeter walls.”

Meya urged residents to abide by the town’s by-laws to avoid being sanctioned.