Online Reporter
Nokuthula Dube
THE Harare City Council has failed to procure toilet paper for staff at its offices across the city for nearly a year, exposing serious inefficiencies in the municipality’s operations.
This has raised concerns about the council’s ability to provide even the most basic services, not only to its employees but also to residents who rely on its administration.
In an interview, Harare Mayor Councillor Jacob Mafume said the council is facing a crisis in securing essential supplies, including toilet paper, printing equipment and stationery across its departments.
“The situation is so dire that even basic necessities such as toilet paper and detergents are in short supply,” he said.
“Some divisions have run out of printing cartridges, printers, bond paper, duplicating tissue, toner, ink and other accessories since last year.”
Mafume said the shortages were unacceptable for an institution of Harare’s size and significance.
He added that the city has held meetings to address these challenges and has also engaged the Procurement Regulatory Authority of Zimbabwe (PRAZ) to resolve procurement bottlenecks.
“We have faced challenges with PRAZ as a procurement entity.
“We believe the city council has not been given the flexibility it needs to operate efficiently,” he said.
Cllr Mafume noted that several meetings had been held with PRAZ to help the regulatory body better understand the urgent nature of Harare’s municipal operations.
“We hope that this year, there will be greater understanding and flexibility from PRAZ to allow us to run essential city functions more effectively,” he said.
