Residents, MDC-T rap govt's new capital city plans

Harare residents and the main opposition MDC-T have accused the Zanu-PF government of seeking to divert the nation's attention from the comatose economy by pushing for construction of the new capital city in Mt Hampden.

Local Government minister Ignatius Chombo recently announced that Cabinet had approved the project with the actual construction set to start in the next two years.

But in an interview yesterday, Combined Harare Residents' Association (CHRA) chairperson Simbarashe Moyo said the move was meant to divert attention to the least on the residents' current needs.

This think this is purely a diversionary act by Chombo to divert people from the problems the country is facing. They don't need to celebrate that. Will that help Zimbabweans that they will have  a new capital city? Moyo said.

They are worried about the economic collapse, ineffective delivery of services and for them to say we are planning to set a city will not console a hungry man and an unemployed graduate on the street.

MDC-T spokesperson Obert Gutu scoffed at the plan saying government had no capacity to carry out such a capital-intensive project given that it was struggling to pay its workers and maintain basic infrastructure like roads.