Peter Matika, [email protected]
BULAWAYO City Council (BCC) has begun demolishing illegal structures at the Mpopoma Outspan Funiture Manufacturing complex, popularly known as Espamprikeni, disrupting the operations of hundreds of informal traders, while the Mpopoma Development Trust has challenged the exercise, claiming the dispute is already before the courts.
The demolitions, which began yesterday, form part of the local authority’s ongoing enforcement of municipal by-laws and the nationwide clean-up campaign aimed at restoring order in business premises and public spaces.
Bulawayo City Council Corporate Communications Manager, Mrs Nesisa Mpofu, said the exercise was intended to ensure that business activities were conducted in compliance with established regulations.
She said council was committed to addressing illegal developments and ensuring that properties and business premises operated within the confines of the law.
“Council is continuing to enforce its bylaws as part of efforts to restore order in the city. The exercise is also in line with the nationwide clean-up campaign, which seeks to ensure that activities taking place in different areas are conducted in an orderly manner and in compliance with the law,” she said.
However, Mpopoma Development Trust director, Mr Jackson Sibanda, criticised the demolitions, arguing that council was proceeding despite the dispute being before the courts.
He said the operation had disrupted the livelihoods of more than 300 people, including furniture manufacturers, employees, traders and other small-scale business operators who depended on the complex.
“We are concerned that council is proceeding with demolitions when the matter is already before the courts. We believe that this amounts to contempt of court because the dispute has not yet been resolved through the judicial process,” he said.
Mr Sibanda said the demolitions had placed hundreds of families at risk of losing their sources of income, particularly as small businesses continued to face economic challenges.
He said the complex had become an important economic centre for entrepreneurs who could not afford to establish businesses in formal industrial areas.
“This place is not just a collection of structures; it is a livelihood centre for hundreds of people.
More than 300 people are affected, and behind every business is a family that depends on the income generated there,” he said.
Mr Sibanda said the trust feared the demolitions could reverse efforts by small-scale entrepreneurs to create employment and contribute to the local economy.
He called for dialogue between council and the affected business operators, saying a lasting solution should be found without unnecessarily destroying livelihoods.
Established in the early 1990s, Espamprikeni had grown into a major furniture manufacturing hub, housing more than 200 carpenters and supporting more than 400 jobs.
However, the number of traders operating at the site has since increased to nearly 300, raising concerns over congestion, sanitation and fire safety.
In January 2023, the complex was gutted by a fire that left more than 200 traders counting their losses and struggling to rebuild their businesses.
The blaze, which allegedly started from a spark within the complex, spread rapidly through flammable materials such as timber, upholstery and leather used in the manufacture of beds, sofas and wardrobes.
According to the trust, traders later began occupying a strip of land adjacent to the complex to accommodate the growing number of businesses.
The land belongs to Bulawayo City Council and is designated as a recreational park for the Mpopoma community. However, it has reportedly become overgrown with grass and bushes.
The expansion has failed to ease congestion at the complex.
