adminHerald Reporter
CHITUNGWIZA residents have rallied behind Zanu-PF councillor-elect Dr Fraderick Mabamba for the post of mayor.
The residents feel Dr Mabamba is their messiah to their perennial troubles which include shortage of water that has haunted the sprawling city for years.
The residents, who are regretting voting for MDC-T councillors say their capacity to deliver was questionable, are urging incoming councillors to support Dr Mabamba because of his vision and support for the people.
The council will be dominated by the MDC-T that presided over the town’s decline over the past five years as councillors engaged in under hand deals ahead of service delivery.
“We have had two years of suffering in the town because of lack of guidance from the previous mayors who were elected without any vision,” said Cde Michael Makuchete, a resident and former Zanu-PF chairman at the University of Zimbabwe.
Cde Makuchete said workers at the troubled council have not been paid for the past six months and their troubles seem to persist if they do not elect a mayor with a vision.
“Mabamba was a deputy mayor for two years some time ago and we believe, as Chitungwiza residents, that he is the right man for the post.
“The councillors who have been at council have been busy self-enriching themselves at the expense of residents.
“Now the suburb has gone for more than a month without anything meaningful being done,” said Makuchete.
Makuchete said the experience that Dr Mabamba has could come in handy in steering the fortunes of Chitungwiza, having been an educationist for years and his experience in council running.
Businessman Mr Manners Machoko said Chitungwiza could attain some glitter if guided by knowledgeable people.
“What we need is knowledgeable people; those who can retain the glitter in the council.
“It is important that the people that we have in the new council include tried and tested citizens like Dr Mabamba. Those can steer council to glitter,” he said.
He said Dr Mabamba has been handy to the community by providing education to the community.
“Dr Mabamba has six schools which have come in as an alternative to the people of Chitungwiza and other towns; he has educated our kids,” Mr Machoko said.
The support for Dr Mabamba comes in the wake of residents’ open criticism last week of the MDC-T for proposing the appointment of Ward 2 councillor-elect Philip Mutodi as the city’s deputy mayor, saying his qualifications would lead the city to the brink.
Water problems, which have bedevilled Chitungwiza for years, worsened in the recent weeks with some areas that used to get water during the night now accessing it only once a week, raising fears of disease outbreak.
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