Clive Thabo Dube
SINCE its inception in 1894, the City of Bulawayo has been touted as one of the cleanest cities in Africa, but the City of Kings and Queens is slowly turning into a pigsty with heaps of garbage and litter over populating the city’s streets and sanitary lanes.
The accumulation of mountains of garbage in the Central Business District (CBD) and failure by the Bulawayo City Council to carry its mandate of refuse collection coupled with another failure to enforce bylaws has given birth to various illegal dumpsites across the city. This has emanates in Zimbabwe’s second largest city lose its allure, thus being overtaken by smaller Mutare City and Kwekwe City who are embracing the smart city concept, a development announced by Local Government, Public Works and National Housing Minister July Moyo in 2019.
Bulawayo vowed to reach the Smart City milestone in 2024.
But stench of garbage continues to hover around the CBD and seems to no longer affect the citizenry who now move about jumping freely like frogs as they avoid puddles of water logged potholes, rotting cabbages and overflowing litter all over the streets.
Sanitary lanes are a filth of their own as used diapers, used sanitary pads, feces accompanied by the foul smell of urine with more litter of rotten vegetables, papers and any rubbish one can think of.
The City Fathers have failed again on their mandate to control illegal vendors who have taken control of the pavements in cohorts with money changers (Osiphatheleni). Not to be left out are Mshikashika who have taken over every corner of the streets, picking and dropping passengers with sheer impunity.
In January, BCC embarked on an initiative to try and eliminate all illegal activities, which included illegal pick-up points, informal trading on undesignated sites (the streets, pavements and roadways) but to no avail.
The notable failure is on Fife Street and George Silundika, 5th Avenue between Robert Mugabe Way and Josiah Tongongara Street (Market). These eyesores area have turned the city of Kings and Queens into a health ticking time bomb.
The local authority has failed to bring order in the “ZANU- PF owned” sites and at the moment, the council has folded its hands, rather than enforcing the by laws.
The clean up exercise in the cultural hub of the country has somewhat been afflicted with political battle between the local authority and politically protected vendors, Mshikashika drivers and osiphatheleni.
Council last year also tried to overcome this hurdle by introducing nighttime garbage collection. However the initiative evaporated into thin air. Now as one enters the CBD in the early morning hours, litter is all over the place.
Speaking to Zim GBC News, Bulawayo United Residents Association (BURA) chairperson, Winos Dube said there is need to maintain the City’s clean standards. In order to do this, the economy has to be improved.
“Bulawayo is still striving to maintain its status as the smart city. However we must understand that it is no longer as its past glory where it used to be the smartest in every corner of it. And this would appear to be caused by the current economic situation of our nation which has called for everyone to run up and down hustling for survival. Hence we are seeing a lot of people doing businesses anywhere disorderly within the city. This has really disturbed and affected the smartness of Bulawayo which we are concerned about. In truth it (Bulawayo) has lost its glory as it used to be in the past years.” Said Winos Dube.
He added that to effectively deal with the problem of waste management, Bulawayo needs leaders of integrity.
“We need to correct our economic situation of our country so that people once again become orderly in everything they do. One major thing needed is for us to have leaders, men and women of integrity. People of reason who will develop some initiatives and methods of how to undo such situations. When one is in leadership, you can not just fold your hands and say things are bad economically and hide behind that. We call upon to have leaders, councilors and administrators of cities who will be innovative in their thinking and come up with best methods. Even during times of serious challenges like we are facing as a nation. Our economy is really at its knees, we really need highly reasoning and thinking leaders who will find some ways to overcome the situation.” Dube added.
The city fathers can be given the benefit of doubt when it comes to service delivery. The country’s economy is crippling but with the exuberant monthly rates the residents being charged, one would wonder which hole is the money being channeled to?
Winos Dube further challenged the current City leaders and those who hold positions after the harmonized elections slated for August, and citizens to take responsibility into bringing Bulawayo back to its past glory.
He urged residents to unite and take responsibility rather than point figures.
City fathers are further failing to maintain or upgrade the aesthetic view of the unique colonial infrastructure, and rehabilitation of road networks.
Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association chairperson (BPRA), Ambrose Sibindi bemoaned the dilapitating state of the city caused by illegal vendors.
“Bulawayo was one of the best cleanest cities in Southern Africa, if not the whole of Africa. The way how the waste was being management was just excellent and the refuse collection was very regular. Now we are seeing a bit of changes because in all honesty we are no longer a clean city as we used to be…if you look at the lettering that is happening in some of our streets.
“All people who are settling wherever they are illegal, the vendors in particular. Go to 6th Avenue, Market area, those people need to be removed because as we speak now its very difficult for council to be cleaning that place. The BCC cleaners find it very hard to be doing their job there because of those people.” Sibindi said.
Sibindi reiterated that at night people have found refuge by sleeping in the CBD and use lanes as toilets.
“Something has to be done to clear all those people that sleep on the streets and look at those trucks that come at night carrying vegetables. They are not even from here, Matabeleland and they spend the night there if not days. And operate where there are no toilets; fouling the place. These are serious challenges, they are bringing in costs to residents of Bulawayo because the waste must be removed. When in reality, the money they make they take it back to where they are from which is not fair”.