Harare City Council officials want to ensure financial income through pre- paid meters

Harare City Council management officials have been accused of wanting to impose the pre-paid water meters in efforts to ensure that they get regular income.

Harare Residents Trust said the intended pilot project for the prepaid water meters by the Harare City Council confirms that the City of Harare officials are the ones more keen to have prepaid water meters as away of guaranteeing themselves regular financial income for salaries and allowances.

"Because if it is about improving service delivery, the residents' priority is that the City of Harare should finish its initial project of replacing dysfunctional conventional water meters," said the trust. "Secondly, the residents want the Water Account of the Harare City Council ring-fenced so that water revenues are only used for the maintenance and upgrade of water infrastructure."

The trust said currently citizens are paying fixed and consumption charges, and plus 70 percent of that revenue is being diverted towards salaries and allowances of councillors and municipal workers