THE year 2017 was generally characterized by poor service delivery which saw Harare residents being exposed to diseases such as cholera and typhoid.
Corruption and misappropriation of funds at the Harare City Council was also the norm.
Failure to prioritize effective service delivery compounded the problems at Town House and at some point, Harare Mayor; Bernard Manyenyeni raised concern over the council’s decision to allocate $5 million to sports at a time service delivery was at its low.
To add on to this, the Harare City Council, as alluded to by Mayor Manyenyeni, “is in the business of paying salaries” with almost every worker at council being overpaid.
In as much as residents might have been expecting the best, events on the ground point that the worst could be coming.
Erratic water supplies continue to be the norm in Harare with some areas now recording over 20 years without receiving council water.
In cases where the water is available, it is very much unsafe for drinking and undoubtedly unfit for human consumption.
Due to the poor water quality, residents of Harare, who have been told to drink the water at their own risk, continue to be exposed to diseases such as cholera and typhoid.
The Harare City Council has also failed to address the major drivers of typhoid and cholera with poor sanitation as well as uncollected garbage continuing to be the norm in Harare.
Water sources continue to be contaminated with raw sewer and garbage while in some instances, some of the boreholes that are supposed to provide water to residents are contaminated as well.
During this rainy season, the road network in Harare continues to get worse while poor drainage systems have exposed residents to flooding and fears are abound that the flooding disasters of 2017 will recur.
Transparency and accountability continue to lack at the Harare City Council with officials apparently failing to prioritize effective service delivery and the residents continue to fall victim to this mal-administration.
Controversy is surrounding the $144 Million China Exim Bank loan which was meant for the refurbishment of Morton Jaffray Water Treatment plant amid indications the money was abused hence the continued water woes in Harare.
CHRA calls upon officials at Harare City Council to prioritize service delivery and uphold principles of accountability and transparency.
In line with our objective of ensuring effective service delivery as well as transparency and accountability, we shall continue mobilizing residents to demand positive results from duty bearers.
Source: Combined Harare Residents Association (CHRA)
