Illegal structures mushroom again

Municipal Reporter

Prohibited structures have resurfaced in Harare and its dormitory towns, raising fears that if the situation is not stopped, it may eventually become difficult to contain.

During the first phases of the national lockdown, order had returned in both Harare and Chitungwiza, as commuter omnibus operators took heed.

But in the last few weeks, vendors and the banned commuter omnibuses have trooped back into the city centre, making some streets impassable.

The MDC-led Harare City Council seems to be folding its hands as the illegal groups of people turn the city upside down.

The once affluent Westgate suburb’s roundabout has been reinvaded by vendors who block mainly Chinhoyi-bound traffic.

Similarly, illegal money changers are back at their usual spots.

In Chitungwiza, less than 500 metres from town house, tuckshops that had been demolished are now being reconstructed.

Local Government and Public Works Deputy Minister, Marian Chombo, said the Government will restore sanity.

“My ministry is working with the local authorities and cooperating particularly in the drafting of model by-laws, which are an appropriate remedy and the provision of spatial planning services,” she said.

“The Women’s Affairs, Community and Small and Medium Enterprises are spearheading a programme to ensure that the informal sector operates in a manner that provides livelihoods to the sector, without posing a nuisance to the public.”

National police spokesperson, Assistant Commissioner Paul Nyathi, said the full wrath of the law will descend on those causing chaos.

“Police are taking action and people should adhere to the stipulated Covid-19 regulations,” he said. “The security services will not hesitate to take action against those violating the lockdown rules. The violators should not cry foul if arrested.”

Harare City Council spokesperson Mr Michael Chideme said they would be guided by the law on demolitions of illegal structures.

“Those building tuckshops, we are giving them notices to vacate because we follow the due course of the law,” he said.

Vendors Initiative for Social and Economic Transformation director, Mr Samuel Wadzanai, said vending from undesignated spaces could only be solved if council opened up satellite markets in residential areas.

The Zimbabwe National Organisation of Associations and Residents Trusts chairperson, Mr Shepherd Chikomba, said councils lacked consistency and could not uphold policies which they enacted.

“The mushrooming of tuckshops and vendors doing car-boot selling is now threatening efforts by the Government to formalise businesses,” he said.

Chitungwiza Progressive Residents Association secretary general, Mr Gift Kurupati, said council must plan how to realise income from the informal sector than to criminalise their activities.

Mr Brighton Kanyama, the acting director for the Chitungwiza and Manyame Rural Residents Association, said council will be able to control illegal vending and boost its revenue collection if it erected market stalls.