Online Reporter
Gibson Mhaka, Zimpapers Politics Hub
ZANU-PF candidate for the forthcoming Nkulumane Constituency by-election, Cde Freedom Murechu, has promised sweeping changes in service delivery and representation, coupling this pledge with a challenge to the opposition’s two-decade tenure in the area, which he accused of abandoning residents and allowing service delivery to collapse.
The by-election, set for 20 December, was necessitated by the death of Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) legislator Mr Desire Moyo, in a car accident on October 10. Nine candidates are contesting the seat, which has historically been held by the opposition.
In an interview, Cde Murechu outlined a comprehensive 100-day plan, pledging that his initial focus, if elected, would be on addressing core infrastructure and safety issues, including water supply, crime and youth development.
Regarding the perennial water supply challenges, Cde Murechu said his 100-day plan is to secure and modernise alternative sources.
“My 100-day plan is to ensure we drill more boreholes in Nkulumane Constituency and solarise them so that we do not just use bush pumps. We will modernise our water supply systems by installing taps and Churchill tanks, and solarising the systems,” he said.
Addressing crime and safety, which he linked to unlit streets and drug abuse, he promised immediate action.
“The issue of unlit streets — there are no street lights, and the streets are always dark — is a fertile ground for criminality. My 100-day plan involves intensifying neighbourhood watch programmes, equipping them with modern tools, and addressing the lack of street lighting.”
He added that a concerted effort would be made with police to ensure drug peddlers are “uprooted from our communities.”
Drawing on his experience as Zanu-PF Bulawayo Provincial Youth Chairperson, Cde Murechu positioned himself as uniquely qualified to tackle the area’s challenges, given that the youth often bear the brunt of economic hardships.
For youth development, Cde Murechu stressed the need to provide alternatives to idleness, which fuels drug and substance abuse.
“My experience as the Provincial Youth League Chairperson has helped me immensely in making sure that I can represent this very diverse urban constituency . . . fundamentally understand the challenges that the youth face,” he said.
His plan for youth development includes establishing a youth centre to provide skills training, talent grooming, and reviving recreational spaces such as parks, which he says have been converted into gardens.
“We need to ensure we have a youth centre in Nkulumane, to develop the youth by providing them with skills to work with their own hands, and promoting awareness, talent grooming and sports.”
Cde Murechu also launched a strong attack on the opposition’s two-decade-long tenure in the constituency, accusing previous representatives of neglect and dereliction of duty.
“It is true that Nkulumane Constituency has been held by the opposition for decades now, save for a few years where Zanu-PF won in a by-election and Comrade Kilian Sibanda was elected MP. But in all these years under the opposition’s rule, Nkulumane Constituency has been lacking in terms of adequate representation. MPs are elected to make sure that they represent their constituents,” Cde Murechu said.
He went further, accusing previous office holders of neglecting their primary function once elected.
“In Nkulumane Constituency, we have had an issue of MPs being elected, only to abandon their people and become ‘missing persons’ instead of Members of Parliament. So, that lack of representation is one of the key issues that the opposition has fundamentally failed to address,” he said.
Cde Murechu highlighted that this absenteeism has allowed the local authority to “fail dismally” on essential service delivery, citing a severe sanitation crisis impacting the community’s health.
“We talk of sewer infrastructure; we talk of refuse collection. As we speak right now, if you go to a suburb like Sekusile, they have gone for three months without refuse collection, and this has become a very serious issue — a threat to our health,” he said.
Cde Murechu expressed high confidence in securing the seat, crediting the party’s unity and strategy on the ground.
“I am very confident that this time around we are going to win this by-election because of the strategy our party is employing . . . The morale is very high in the camp,” he said.
He stressed that his approach is to win over the entire community, pledging to be non-partisan if elected by establishing a Constituency Development Committee (CDC) that consults with all community structures, including vendors, churches and residents’ associations.
“If elected as the MP for Nkulumane Constituency, I will make sure that I become non-partisan. I will no longer represent the party only, but I will represent the people of Nkulumane,” Cde Murechu said.
