Chronicle Editor
Rutendo Nyeve, Sunday News Reporter
CHIEF Bidi, from Kezi in Matabeleland South Province has embarked on an ambitious project that will see the construction of a multi-purpose facility in his area of jurisdiction meant to modernise traditional leadership.
The multi-purpose facility will include a community hall, computer laboratory, library, vocational training centre, community granary, and administrative offices for traditional leaders.
In an interview with Sunday News, the youthful chief said his aim is to bring modernity to traditional leadership while also enhancing access to community leadership.
He said the initiative was inspired by the community, which has been conducting traditional meetings under a tree due to unavailability of infrastructure.
Born Mr Nqaba Ndiweni, Chief Bidi a holder of a Bachelor of Science Honours Degree in Computer Science from the National University of Science and Technology (Nust) told Sunday News that they have already set in motion the initiative through lining up various fund-raising activities for the festive holidays.
“The idea was inspired by the community who found themselves without a meeting place and shelter after being ejected from the temporary venues that we have been using since my installation. They resolved to construct a permanent structure of their own. As the chief, I then added the vocational training centre, computer lab as well as the community granary, to the idea because our youths and the needy are so dear to my heart,” said Chief Bidi.
He said they required at least US$50 000 for the super structure excluding fittings, accessories and the building materials which will be supplied by the community.
“The community will provide bricks, sand and builders’ assistants. The multi-purpose hall will be utilised for inkundla, community meetings, social gatherings, vocational training as well as seasonal boot camps to equip our school leavers with modern skills.
“There will also be a computer laboratory that will be shared by all the schools that are under Chief Bidi which presently do not have computer labs. They will access the lab for free during scheduled school periods.
“The community in general, including school leavers and school kids (outside scheduled times) will have access to the facilities for a token fee that will be utilised for the payment of bandwidth as well as the maintenance of the lab. We want to bring the whole community into the information age,” said Chief Bidi.
He said isiphala senkosi/community granary that is under the control of the chief and the traditional leadership is meant to assist the needy and provide drought relief during drought seasons.
In a quest to modernise traditional leadership, Chief Bidi said the multi-purpose facility will have administrative offices for the traditional leadership who include the headmen and village heads.
“The facility will have administrative offices for the traditional leadership where the community will have guaranteed access to the community leaders and traditional leadership services. We want to be accessible to our community,” said Chief Bidi.
To commence the fundraising towards the project, Chief Bidi said they will hold a sports tournament business concept where they sponsor prize money for teams in return for exclusive selling rights throughout the tournament.
“This is our first fund-raising initiative, we expect to have more which are likely to be different from the sports tournament throughout the duration of the project which will include a go fund me account for well-wishers in the diaspora who may be unable to attend local fund-raising events.
“We expect to begin with the drilling and equipping of a borehole and erecting a perimeter fence for the security of our building materials. I wish to therefore appeal to the Bidi community at large including those in the diaspora and well-wishers to assist towards achieving our community objectives,” said Chief Bidi.
The Bidi chieftaincy’s area of jurisdiction is bounded by Shashane River in the east and Semukwe River in the west. It stretches from Marinoha Hills in the in the north, where it shares a boundary with Chief Fuyana and ends in the south at Demarcation Line Road, where Chief Malaba’s area starts. — @nyeve14
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