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The Government cited rampant tender scams in the councils, as the reason behind the stripping of procurement powers and transferred the mandate to the State Procurement Board (SPB).
In an interview, on Friday the chairperson of the Urban Councils Association of Zimbabwe (UCAZ) and the Mayor for Masvingo, Alderman Femias Chakabuda said the Government has accepted their appeal and revised its stance on tenders.
“When this directive came from the Government we quickly expressed our concerns as councils and submitted our objections against it.
“After submitting our presentation Cabinet directed that the decision be reversed and that councils should be allowed to continue working as they used to,” said Alderman Chakabuda.
“The decision was made towards the end of last year and has been communicated to us. This was a Christmas gift for councils from the Government”.
Ald Chakabuda said the move to strip local authorities of tendering powers was ill timed, especially considering that there was widespread concern over the centralised nature of the SPB.
“The Government and most people in the country have been accusing the SPB of inefficiency in dealing with only 56 parastatals. It was going to be a wonder how the SPB was going to handle an extra burden of 96 local authorities,” said Ald Chakabuda.
“As councils our services are sensitive. If pumps break down for instance, we cannot afford to wait and follow SPB procedures, which take a long time.
“Most of our services need urgent action. Through our committees we are able to act immediately to avoid disaster. The SPB is not designed for emergency services. They need to advertise and wait for a long time”.
Bulawayo Mayor, Councillor Thaba Moyo, also confirmed the reversal of the procurement ban during the full council meeting on Wednesday.
“I have been to Harare and Minister Biti told us that the decision to bar councils from handling tenders was nullified. This means that our procurement boards are still intact and we will work as we used to,” said Clr Thaba Moyo.
At that time Ward 14 councillor Phinias Ndlovu interjected saying the council should wait until it received a circular informing them about the move.
In his response, Clr Moyo said the local authority should look ahead and do its work while waiting for the circular from central Government.
Minister Biti could not be reached for comment on his mobile phone while his permanent secretary Mr Willard Manungo was said to be off-duty.
However, an official from the ministry who declined to be named acknowledged that there has been correspondence between the ministry and council over the issue but declined to give details.
The chairperson of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Budget, Finance and Investment Cde Paddy Zhanda could neither deny nor confirm the development.
“That issue is handled by the Ministry of Finance and the SPB,” he said without elaborating.
The Minister of Local Government, Rural and Urban Development, Dr Ignatius Chombo could also not be reached for comment as his mobile phone rang unanswered.
Bongani Ndlovu
Online Reporter