Online Reporter
FOR many years, Bulawayo was widely regarded as Zimbabwe’s cleanest and best-managed city.
Clean streets, orderly traffic and respect for municipal by-laws defined its identity.
Today, however, that reputation is under threat.
Litter, illegal dumping and the proliferation of vendors outside designated trading areas have become increasingly visible concerns.
The alarm has been sounded at the highest levels. Last week, Local Government Minister Daniel Garwe placed Bulawayo in “intensive care” due to severe service delivery shortcomings.
Provincial Affairs Minister Judith Ncube echoed this urgency, calling for decisive action to restore sanity.
But as the city moves to restore order, we must confront a difficult question: How do we enforce the law without crushing the livelihoods of the most vulnerable?
We cannot speak of illegal vending without acknowledging the economic desperation that drives it.
For many families, vending has become an important source of income and a way of putting food on the table.
These are not criminals; they are mothers, fathers and young people trying to survive in an economy that has offered them few alternatives.
Their presence on our streets is a symptom of a crisis that requires compassion as much as enforcement.
The temptation in moments of crisis is to reach for the heaviest hand.
But a heavy-handed approach that merely sweeps vendors off the streets without addressing underlying causes will only displace the problem.
Vendors pushed out of the CBD will relocate to residential areas, creating new challenges.
Instead, the city must adopt a strategy that combines firmness with fairness.
This means designating viable trading spaces properly serviced with water and sanitation.
It means engaging with trader associations to develop shared solutions.
It means providing transition periods that allow vendors to relocate without losing their livelihoods.
And it means strengthening support for the most vulnerable — the elderly, the disabled, those with no other options.
It has been rightly noted that while supporting informal traders is vital, this cannot come at the expense of public health, safety and urban order.
But we must also remember that a city’s greatness is measured not just by its cleanliness, but by how it treats its most vulnerable citizens.
A city that is clean but heartless has lost its soul.
The road ahead requires partnership between Government, council, businesses, traders and residents.
Bulawayo can reclaim its status as one of the cleanest and best-managed cities in the region.
But it must do so in a way that honours the dignity of every resident.
The time to act is now, with both strength and compassion.
