Minister commends BCC on roads

THE Minister of Transport and Infrastructural Development Joram Gumbo has commended the Bulawayo City Council (BCC) for employing residents to patch-up potholes in the city.

Gumbo, after touring some of the city's suburbs yesterday, said the initiative to empower residents should be emulated by other local authorities. The local authority's director of engineering services, Engineer Simela Dube, had told Gumbo that the council was engaging residents to patch-up roads in their suburbs.

Dube said the residents undergo a two-day crash course in road maintenance before being engaged. Gumbo said allowing residents to work on their roads gives them a sense of ownership for projects in their areas.

"I'm impressed by the local authority's approach to rehabilitating its roads. The initiative of engaging ordinary people in patching and mending roads with the assistance of the city's engineering department is very commendable. I wish this could be emulated by the other cities and rural councils," said Gumbo.

He was also encouraged to note that most of the funds being released to the BCC by Zinara were being put to good use. Gumbo was, however, unimpressed that BCC failed to take him to some of the worst roads in the city.

"I would've loved to be taken to some of the worst roads. I thought you were going to take me to Cowdray Park and Luveve roads. This would've put me in a better position to seek funds for Bulawayo," he said.

Gumbo said suburbs like Cowdray Park need urgent road rehabilitation, as they're adjacent to resettlement areas where people were allocated land before the government could improve their infrastructure.

The council showed the minister work that has been done on the City-Hillside Road, City-Cecil Drive before being taken to Mzilikazi suburb where he was shown a road which was being patched by the locals.