adminIt is no longer possible to think of MDC-T as a political party but as a bunch of greedy individuals bent on destroying any functioning structure in any private and public entity simply to fund their savage opulence.
The people of Bulawayo woke up one day recently, to a sad reality that they might lose their much treasured Tower Block and Revenue Hall to
Kingdom Bank for money that council borrowed, not to funding any public project but for buying flashy cars for senior managers. Honestly it does not require a rocket scientist to know that the $3 or $4 million that was “misused” by council may have gone a long way in rehabilitating our roads, improving refuse collection and the welfare of our council workers but that was not a priority to our council, who thought senior executives wanted comfortable cars.
The writer has been informed that had it not for the few God-fearing councillors in that council who have, with amazing courage, stood against the propensity for opulence of MDC-T councillors, worse damage could have been done.
The insolvency of our beloved city is a very serious matter which should push all proudly Bulawayo people into action in a bid to save the city from imminent collapse. We now have a city that can’t afford to pay its workers. We have MDC-T councillors who refuse to eat biscuits during meetings in preference of the burgers. We have a council that can hardly afford refuse collection services yet it abuses ratepayers’ money on luxuries.
This is not just a failure to prioritise ratepayers’ needs, but a clear act of criminality; a clear act of betrayal of the people by figures they elected into office. The heartlessness of this council is indeed record-breaking. One is left with no option but to ask why these elected officials are behaving in such a way. The answer is simple, Bulawayo is under siege.
We have councillors who in reality, don’t come from Bulawayo and thus do not have the interests of Bulawayo at heart. We have councillors who take this civic duty as employment instead of driving the growth of our city.
It is a public secret that the majority of these councillors come from a party that has been credited with the destruction of one of the biggest employers of our people, the textile industry. It is the same party again that at some stage in 2009, had forgotten to appoint ministers from the region until the media spoke out about it.
It is thus, unbelievable for most of us to accept that this is just an innocent case of maladministration. The writer, like the majority of our people on the street, is aware that these councillors are people with a clear instruction from the top leadership.
They were instructed: “Go ye there and destroy their city.” Some of us will remember that we had the leadership of the executive mayor of Bulawayo Japhet Ndabeni Ncube, who to this day stands as a man who served the council with unparalleled diligence. We remember that his council’s major purchase of vehicles were ambulances that were barter-traded with a piece of land.
We still maintained the City of Kings and Queens’ cleanliness; yet it was difficult period with the Zimbabwe dollar at that time. So where are the MDC-T officials failing? The answer is simple; they have a clear agenda to destroy our city.
One thing that we as a people must not forget is that Bulawayo was one of the best-managed cities not only in Southern Africa but also in Africa. Bulawayo is the city with so much historical significance not only to the people of Matabeleland but the entire Southern Africa.
No one can talk of the history of King Mzilikazi and Lobengula and their people without talking about Bulawayo. Even the colonialist will not forget the heroic attributes of her people, so this selling out of our city in exchange for vehicles is rank treachery that cannot go unchallenged.
The writer in his capacity as a ratepayer is convinced that there can be no better time for the residents to take a stand than this now. I believe the true courageous and heroes of our region should stand up and call the council to order.
We can’t at this stage sleep in peace in our homes when the city is burning. Another day with this MDC-T council at City Hall is one too long. Who knows what it will sell next?
Online Reporter