HARARE City Council (Hcc) never ceases to amaze me as complaints continue to be made against city authorities by residents over issues of service delivery, corruption and discourteousness on the part of municipal police and parking agents, among several other improprieties.
The grievances raised by residents have landed on deaf ears as responsible authorities are impervious to these issues. Who should rescue residents from the jaws of the ruthless lions at this juncture when the economy is on a free-fall?
Being made to pay a US$57 penalty for failing to display a valid parking disc when one is getting US$300 a month shows how sadist the local authority is.
Why is the city council inconsiderate to the plight of residents?
The once sunshine and thriving city has become a pale shadow of itself, where order is now a taboo.
To begin with, service delivery has collapsed totally with heaps of garbage sprawling all over the city.
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The rubbish is a natural habitat for rodents, with water bodies being breeding places for mosquitos, making it a possible trigger of disease outbreaks like cholera, typhoid, dysentery, malaria or even bilharzia.
Water and sanitation are now rare commodities and the problems are now perennial, with no solution in sight despite changes in leadership.
We have had many mayors, town clerks, directors who enjoy huge perks at the helm of the council, but with nothing to offer.
Some of them have been implicated in corruption, abuse of office as well as maladministration, but they remain in office, aggravating the already miserable situation.
Until when are we going to witness our city sink at supersonic speed while we stand akimbo?
Laying the blame on government alone is utter tomfoolery as councillors and mayors are willy-nilly making shocking management decisions, including even parcelling out uninhabitable land to prospective home-seekers.
Harare City Council has at least 12 running clinics which have suffered from understaffing for a time immemorial.
Motivation is very low, with basic drugs missing from the shelves, deplorable conditions of service and tools of trade in sorry state.
In this day and age, there is no healthcare institution that should run without power back-up as some areas are facing over 12 hours of electricity outage.
Power outages have direct effects on drug storage, service efficiency and effectiveness. Research done in other countries shows that power outages result in an increase in patient mortality.
If the leakages and resource wastage reported at Harare City Council are plugged, council health institutions can offer better service delivery, what is needed is administrative and political will to capacitate the clinics.
Corruption has reared its ugly head at Town House, with constant reports of funds being siphoned from council coffers for self-aggrandisement.
Having a reliable solar system or stand-by generators will not cost council millions of dollars.
Why should the city continue to be run by the same old managers who are prennially being implicated in the rot?
The ill-treatment of vendors touched my heart one day when many of them, mostly women, were shoved into a huge lorry with their wares randomly thrown onto the back of trucks.
The iniquitous behaviour by council security officers is unpardonable.
Vendors are trying to earn a living by selling their commodities.
We understand they may be selling at undesignated places, but confiscating and destroying their goods is highly unethical.
It is common knowledge that some council security officers steal the wares to feed their families.
Why does the country allow such barbarous acts to be meted out on the suffering citizens?
It is high time the Local Government ministry intervened without further delay!
City Parking has been ruthless by wantonly clamping and towing vehicles, inconveniencing many motorists, some of whom are unknowingly caught in the melee.
This reprehensible behaviour by council officials should be investigated without fear or favour.
It is undeniable that our esteemed city has been run down by uncaring leaders who do not deserve a day in office.
A commission of inquiry may be better placed to deal with the contemporary issues bedevilling the city.
Time for action is now.
- Johannes Marisa is a medical practitioner who is the current president of the Medical and Dental Private Practitioners Association of Zimbabwe.