Chronicle Editor
Johnsias Mutonhori, Midlands Correspondent
THE Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution in the Midlands Province Cde Owen Ncube has challenged Gweru City Council (GCC) to scale up service delivery and meet the expectations of residents in line with the smart city concept that points to vision 2030.
Commenting on the state of service delivery in Gweru during a tour of damaged roads on Friday, Minister Ncube said the city council was not operating at par with its mandate, creating a condition that left Gweru lagging on smart city vision.
“Generally, service delivery by the City of Gweru needs improvement. There is need to address issues of dry taps, uncollected garbage, dilapidated buildings, potholes, non-functional traffic, and street lights, shortage of proper vending sites and public toilets among several other run-down social amenities. We are aware of efforts by the city council to restore water reticulation. However, I implore the city fathers and management to take heed of President Mnangagwa’s policy direction on improved service delivery through strengthening internal systems and leveraging on comparative advantages as well as opening up to the corporate world to harness available opportunities and materials like pre-mix in pothole patching,” he said.
Most roads, both within the CBD and those connecting it to residential areas are impassable. Tap water supply has been rationed, with most suburbs receiving water only once a week. The city has also been without functioning traffic lights for the past eight years. Minister Ncube reminded residents and city leaders that access to clean water and a clean environment was a fundamental right of every citizen. He highlighted that virtuous service delivery was an integral part of Vision 2030 that talks of the smart city concept.
“Residents deserve uninterrupted supply of water, clean environment and provision of facilities that promote business development, wellness, unity and peace. I urge local authorities to adhere to smart city principles and urban renewal concepts. Social and economic approach to development planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation should be pursued to ensure attainment of an upper middle-income economy as envisioned by President Mnangagwa,” he said.
He challenged the city council to immediately roll out a clear pothole patching programme.
“The infrastructure and utilities thematic working group chaired by the Ministry of Transport’s provincial roads engineer must immediately convene with the city council and all relevant private entities to mobilise resources for pothole patching.
The Emergency Road Repair Programme II provincial technical committee must immediately undertake monitoring visits to local authorities and proffer advice on the implementation of the programme while the District Development Coordinator, and Gweru acting Town Clerk should provide weekly progress reports to my office on the pothole patching programme,” he demanded.
During a special council meeting held last Wednesday, Mayor Councillor Martin Chivoko confirmed that Gweru had received ZWL $708 million from Zinara for road rehabilitation. However, the rehabilitation process was temporarily interrupted by heavy rainfall.
“We have a schedule for road rehabilitation for the last quarter of 2023 and the first quarter of 2024. There was a slight disturbance in following the schedule which was caused by the diversion of manpower and equipment to critical areas affected by flash floods. We received ZWL $708 million from Zinara, as a disbursement for a ward-based road rehabilitation programme and the bulk of it was used to service equipment and purchase material for pothole patching, we expect to receive our initial funding for 2024 soon,” he said.
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