adminTawanda Mangoma in Chiredzi
Candidates from different political parties vying for local authority seats here are set to meet at a joint campaign rally convened by residents.
The residents said the joint rally would avail them with an opportunity to choose councillors with their interests at heart.
In an interview yesterday, Chiredzi Residents Association chairman Mr Jonathan Muusha said the town was faced with a litany of challenges.
He said as residents, they will not vote for councillors based on party politics, but rather on individual capacity to take Chiredzi forward.
“As residents, we agreed to convene a meeting with all aspiring councillors under Chiredzi Urban where they will get a platform to unpack their visions,” he said.
“This is one of the most important forums for us to make up good choices when electing leaders.
“We cannot put our hopes on leaders who are good at speaking through posters and lack the ideals to solve our town’s pressing challenges.
“We have a lot of service delivery challenges, which if not addressed may stall sustainable development and the town’s growth.
“For instance, septic tanks in Makondo high density suburb need to be attended to as a matter of urgency.
“In fact, we are sitting on a ticking health time bomb in that area.”
Mr Muusha said they were looking at councillors with meaningful solutions to their problems.
He said the residents were also worried about the plight of council employees who have gone for 11 months without getting their salaries.
According to Mr Muusha, the local authority was owed over $10 million by rate payers, a development, which has resulted in poor service delivery.
“These outgoing councillors were fairly good,” he said.
“They at times ignored advice from the general public and this created a rift between council and residents.
“At some point we offered to help the local authority in conducting awareness campaigns to promote the payment of rates and services to reduce the debt, but it fell on deaf ears and this has seen workers going for a long period without getting their salaries.”
Mr Muusha said they were interested in elected servant leaders who had people at heart like President Mnangagwa, who has promoted a reciprocal relationship with citizens.
Chiredzi has eight wards in which MDC Alliance, zanu-pf and a few independent candidates will be contesting.
zanu-pf candidate for Ward 2 Cde Obert Ngwenya said he was ready to unpack his developmental plans for the town at the joint rally.
MDC Alliance’s candidate for Ward 5 Mr Tinofireyi Wadzai said he was the right person to lead the ward.
Online Reporter