Online Reporter
Harare City Council deserves credit for demonstrating that residents, who deliberately turn the city’s roadsides and public spaces into dumping grounds, can be identified and held accountable.
Last week there was a viral video of two women who were dumping litter by the roadside in Kuwadzana, triggering widespread condemnation from audiences on the respective social media platforms.
And it was refreshing to see the Harare council returning to social media with an update that action was taken and the culprits were tracked, located and made to collect the litter while further action included a fine.
The council feedback sends an important message that the days when people could dump waste in public places with little fear of consequences must come to an end.
What makes the incident particularly encouraging is the role played by members of the public and social media.
A video posted on X and other platforms provided evidence that enabled Harare Municipal Police and Geo Pomona Waste Management officials to trace the offender using the vehicle registration number.
This is precisely the kind of partnership that is needed between citizens and authorities if Harare is to reverse its worsening waste-management crisis.
Residents cannot expect municipal authorities to be everywhere at every moment and this is where responsible citizens can make a significant difference.
People who witness illegal dumping should report it to the relevant authorities, particularly where they can safely obtain useful information such as vehicle registration numbers, locations, times and, where appropriate, photographs or video footage.
The council’s invitation for citizens to make anonymous reports is therefore welcome. It gives residents an opportunity to participate in protecting their communities without necessarily exposing themselves to confrontation or retaliation.
But citizen reporting must not become a substitute for effective municipal enforcement. The responsibility for enforcing by-laws ultimately rests with the authorities. Litter does not simply disappear after it is thrown out of a vehicle window or dumped beside a road. It can block drainage systems, contribute to flooding, create breeding grounds for disease vectors, pollute water sources and make neighbourhoods unattractive.
The damage is ultimately borne by the entire community.
This is why enforcement must be consistent rather than occasional. If people see others dumping waste without consequences, they are likely to conclude that the law is optional. Conversely, when offenders are consistently identified, fined and required to correct the damage they have caused, the message becomes clear: public spaces belong to everyone and must be respected.
Council should therefore use the recent incident as a starting point for a broader enforcement campaign.
Technology is clearly an important ally. Citizens armed with smartphones can similarly provide valuable evidence, provided they do so safely and lawfully.
Residents must stop treating public spaces as convenient dumping sites and report those who do. Council, on the other hand, must ensure that reports are acted upon and that by-laws are enforced fairly and consistently.
Harare belongs to all its residents. Keeping it clean cannot be left entirely to council employees, nor can it be achieved by citizens acting alone.
The lesson from the Kuwadzana incident is simple: citizens can be the eyes and ears of the authorities, but authorities must have the will to act on what citizens see. That is the partnership Harare urgently needs.
