Opinion / Columnist
Debtor collection discord at the City of Harare
10 Mar 2017 at 14:29hrs | Views
The City of Harare engaged Well-cash debt collectors to recover what is purportedly owed by residents. Yesterday the Mayor of Harare His Worship Councilor B. G. Manyenyeni issued a directive to the Acting Town Clerk Ms. Josphine Ncube advising her to cancel whatever agreement the Local Authority had entered with Well-cash debt collectors. In direct disregard of such directive the City of Harare Head of Communications Mr. Michael Chideme issued a statement over radio that engagement of Well-cash still stands.
Community Water Alliance values basic tenets of public policy and the different roles between policy makers and bureaucrats.
The fact of the matter is that engaging or disengaging private debt collectors is a policy issue whose formulation lies squarely with councilors as policy makers.
The role of workers at City of Harare is to implement policy directives through day to day activities. It is not the role of a worker to formulate, re-invent or alter policy. The directive from a policy maker should therefore be correctly communicated and implemented by bureaucrats. That is a simple good and effective governance matter.
The questions on how the policy was formulated remains a procedural issue that has nothing to do with bureaucrats. Questions on procedure have to be raised by other councilors as policy makers or by residents demanding accountability and transparency or by any other government institution mandated to play a supervisory role over Local Authorities.
Disregarding a policy directive is tantamount to assuming power and authority of the Ministry of Local Government policy makers who, in the absence of Harare Metropolitan Council, assumes an oversight role over Harare as a Local Authorities.
The decision by City of Harare bureaucrats is therefore an act of in-subordination, misconduct and disregard of lawful instructions. It warrants dismissal or strong cautioning. The Labour Act clearly governs relations between the employer and employee. Bureaucrats who have a strong desire to formulate policy have a chance to contest for positions and get elected.
Based on above submissions Community Water Alliance strongly support Mayor B. G. Manyenyeni's policy directive to stop debt collectors and dismiss a statement by Mr. Michael Chideme as a HOAX MESSAGE.
#BasicsOfPublicPolicy
Hildaberta Rwambiwa
National Chairperson
E-mail: communitywateralliance@gmail.com
Source - Hildaberta Rwambiwa
All articles and letters published on Bulawayo24 have been independently written by members of Bulawayo24's community. The views of users published on Bulawayo24 are therefore their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Bulawayo24. Bulawayo24 editors also reserve the right to edit or delete any and all comments received.
