adminJUST four years ago, Gift Tsvevere was a rising star in the chamber of the Chitungwiza Town Council.
Young, educated and ambitious, he clearly had the world at his feet.
He was a breath of fresh air – a holder of a Master’s Degree Public Policy and Practice from the University of Greenwich in the United Kingdom and a BSc Honours Degree in Development Studies from Bindura University of Science Education (BUSE).
During his college days, he had already shown his leadership qualities and rose to become the Student Representative Council president at BUSE.
He had worked for some of the country’s leading firms and then went to South Africa to work as a research assistant with the African Democratic Institute.
In 2018, he was elected the Mayor of Chitungwiza.
This was his crowning moment and, when he spoke, he struck the right notes.
He vowed to transform the town through the implementation of sound policies.
The 35-year-old from Ward 22 said this after taking his oath at Chitungwiza Municipality head office on Tuesday.
“I am aware that some of my predecessors failed to deliver on residents’ expectations for various reasons. I will not be a failure like them because I am a results-oriented person,” he said.
“From past experience, Chitungwiza has suffered due to incompetent councillors who were not able to fully understand the Urban Councils Act and other Acts, which support the operations of local authority.
“I have the necessary skills required to do the job. I understand laws governing local authorities and together with other councillors we will make necessary resolutions and ensure they are implemented.”
He also hit out at corrupt councillors who had been serving themselves at the expense of the town’s residents.
There was no reason for the residents of Chitungwiza to doubt him.
While he didn’t spend a lot of time as Mayor, with his election being challenged, which forced him to eventually quit, he still left with a reputation which appeared intact.
Clearly, among those who believed in him, he would get another chance as Mayor because, after all, he had age on his side.
But, after a dramatic few days, in the past week, even his closest colleagues now know that the game is over for him.
What started as a routine appearance for him, at the Harare Civil Court, has turned into a disaster for the former Mayor.
The stunning revelations, in which his wife claimed he abused her and threatened her with a knife, made for some sad reading.
That it didn’t matter to him that his wife was six-months pregnant has exposed him as a mad man who did not deserve to be a Mayor of a leading urban settlement, in this country, in the first place.
Surely, if he can’t run his home, as was proved in court last week, how can the thousands of people who live in Chitungwiza expect them to run their town?
Sadly, Tsverere is not the only one.
He is the only one who has been exposed but they are many like him out there.
Online Reporter