Harare residents have accused the local authority of prioritising its bloated wage bill at the expense of service delivery, which they say has gone down to alarming levels.
BY XOLISANI NCUBE
Harare Residents’ Trust co-ordinator, Precious Shumba yesterday said council had neglected its core business of service delivery and turned itself into a looting haven for its senior management and workers, who were reportedly earning mega salaries.
“It is sad that City of Harare is neglecting its obligation to provide services to the citizenry. The paying of huge bonuses and allowances to senior management is unacceptable to residents, who are forced to pay for services not rendered by the way of summons,” he said.
Last week, NewsDay exposed high perks that were being paid to city workers at a time when the local authority is battling to provide potable water and other basic services.
According to a salary schedule released last week, junior-ranking city workers were getting higher salaries than most civil servants.
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The council is committing the bulk of its resources to wages, leaving less than 20% for service delivery The bloated wage bill has seen council failing to sustain salaries, hence, it now owes six months’ wages.
“The city is failing to provide consistent refuse collection, clear all blocked drains especially when we are approaching the rainy season, failing to do roads maintenance and is trying to kill the people they are supposed to serve by providing untreated water and in most suburbs, failing to provide the precious commodity and keeps on giving bonuses to people, who forget why they are with the city and ignore residents’ concerns. The city is not there to make individuals rich, but to deliver services,” Shumba said.
He warned that if council does not reform, residents would stop paying rates and for other services.
Simbarashe Moyo, of the Combined Harare Residents’ Association, said council should set its priorities correctly and slash top management’s allowances that were gobbling a huge chunk of revenue.
“The mayor and his councillors in Harare should revert to their policymaking role, representing the residents and not continue to act like they are council employees,” he said.
“Councillors are totally captured by senior council management, who keep them controlled through payment of obscene allowances and salaries. The mayor and the majority of councillors are totally divorced from the electorate. They are united with managers against citizens.”