Online Reporter
Obey Musiiwa
RESIDENTS of Southerton suburb have opened a police case against Harare City Council over an unguarded excavation along the Southerton-Lyton road that they say has been abandoned for more than a year and has become a crime hotspot.
The development follows a recent robbery near the excavation, with residents expressing fears that the open pit could also claim lives, following the death of three people who fell into an uncovered sewer pit in Budiriro in June.
Pictures taken this week show the trench still open along the road linking Southerton, Lyton and Workington industrial areas.
The excavation is now overgrown with tall grass, while stagnant, algae-green water and litter have accumulated inside.
A police case was opened on September 20 following the latest robbery near the site. The case is recorded under reference number RRB 660232.
Residents said several similar incidents had allegedly gone unreported because previous cases had not yielded results.
They said the excavation was dug more than 12 months ago, when council workers moved into the area and told residents the work was part of a development project.
However, residents said the workers later left the site without completing the works or securing the excavation.
The residents are now calling for the council to either complete the works or properly secure the site to protect motorists, pedestrians and nearby residents.
Zanu-PF shadow legislator for Southerton Constituency, Cde Andrew Makahamadze, said the excavation had endured two Christmases, two New Years, two rainy seasons that filled it with dirty water, and two dry seasons that turned it to dust, all while residents lived in fear.
“That excavation has lived with us for over a year, and it became a landmark for crime, a den for thieves,” he said.
“At 5 am when workers walk to Workington, at 6 pm when school children return to Southerton and Lyton, that trench is what they fear the most.”
Cde Makahamadze said residents had been counting robberies and muggings around the site for more than a year, with some cases reported to police and many more abandoned after nothing came of earlier reports.
He cited the Budiriro tragedy in June, where a teenager drowned after falling into a sewer sludge pit left open by council workers, with two more bodies later pulled from the same pit.
“Was the Budiriro tragedy not enough? A child died, families lost their loved ones because an excavation was left open. Must history repeat itself along Lyton Road before someone listens?”
He demanded that the City of Harare secure the pit, erect warning signage, restore the road and account for more than a year of negligence.
Harare City Council spokesperson Mr Stanley Gama said the council will act swiftly once the matter is formally reported within its structures.
“I will immediately write the report to the relevant department in the council structures for the matter to be attended as soon as possible,” he said.
“The council might not be aware of the developments but if found responsible, the council will take immediate action.”
