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Zanu-PF blocks city street vendors removals
2 hrs ago |
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A Bulawayo City Council (BCC) operation to remove street vendors from the city centre was halted after leaders of Patriotic Vendors4ED and Zanu-PF officials intervened, arguing that traders should not be evicted before alternative vending sites are provided.
The confrontation unfolded during a municipal enforcement operation in the central business district, where council officials had begun confiscating goods from vendors operating illegally.
The operation came to a standstill after Patriotic Vendors4ED national chairperson Sawu Jere arrived at the scene and held discussions with council officials and traders.
Jere accused the council of failing to adequately develop the Bhaktas vending site, which was intended to accommodate approximately 1,400 unregistered vendors.
"We understand that part of those funds may have been redirected to the Highlanders Flea Market at the corner of Fife Street and Connaught Avenue," Jere alleged.
"What we have at Bhaktas now is only resurfacing, with no proper structures and no toilet facilities. It is an eyesore and unusable."
He urged authorities to adopt a long-term strategy for managing informal trading instead of relying on enforcement operations.
"The council has complete databases of vendors," he said.
"The solution is to allocate them to strategic sites along customer footpaths, not to chase them away."
Bulawayo Zanu-PF provincial commissar Douglas Gangaidzo also questioned the timing of the operation, saying engagement should take precedence over confiscations.
"We are supposed to be in dialogue. So why confiscate wares when we are still waiting for dialogue?" he said.
Patriotic Vendors4ED provincial chairperson Jonas Chiro alleged that the Bhaktas site had been diverted from its intended purpose and was now operating as an illegal commuter omnibus rank.
Zanu-PF Nehanda District chairperson Josiah Mutangi called for direct engagement between council and informal traders.
"What we need now is dialogue and coordination," Mutangi said.
"Vendors must be at the table as we map the way forward."
The standoff follows a briefing held last week between Bulawayo City Council, Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Judith Ncube and the Joint Operations Command.
During the meeting, Deputy Mayor Edwin Ndlovu and Town Clerk Christopher Dube outlined plans to partner with the private sector to improve waste management in the city centre, where street vending has frequently been blamed for litter and congestion.
Dube said the proposed relocation programme was informed by research identifying suitable sites for organised vending.
Ncube said the current situation in the city centre could not be allowed to continue and called for coordinated action among all stakeholders.
The meeting resolved to convene an emergency planning session to develop modalities for relocating informal traders with the aim of improving sanitation, easing congestion and restoring order in Bulawayo's central business district.
The confrontation unfolded during a municipal enforcement operation in the central business district, where council officials had begun confiscating goods from vendors operating illegally.
The operation came to a standstill after Patriotic Vendors4ED national chairperson Sawu Jere arrived at the scene and held discussions with council officials and traders.
Jere accused the council of failing to adequately develop the Bhaktas vending site, which was intended to accommodate approximately 1,400 unregistered vendors.
"We understand that part of those funds may have been redirected to the Highlanders Flea Market at the corner of Fife Street and Connaught Avenue," Jere alleged.
"What we have at Bhaktas now is only resurfacing, with no proper structures and no toilet facilities. It is an eyesore and unusable."
He urged authorities to adopt a long-term strategy for managing informal trading instead of relying on enforcement operations.
"The council has complete databases of vendors," he said.
"The solution is to allocate them to strategic sites along customer footpaths, not to chase them away."
Bulawayo Zanu-PF provincial commissar Douglas Gangaidzo also questioned the timing of the operation, saying engagement should take precedence over confiscations.
Patriotic Vendors4ED provincial chairperson Jonas Chiro alleged that the Bhaktas site had been diverted from its intended purpose and was now operating as an illegal commuter omnibus rank.
Zanu-PF Nehanda District chairperson Josiah Mutangi called for direct engagement between council and informal traders.
"What we need now is dialogue and coordination," Mutangi said.
"Vendors must be at the table as we map the way forward."
The standoff follows a briefing held last week between Bulawayo City Council, Provincial Affairs and Devolution Minister Judith Ncube and the Joint Operations Command.
During the meeting, Deputy Mayor Edwin Ndlovu and Town Clerk Christopher Dube outlined plans to partner with the private sector to improve waste management in the city centre, where street vending has frequently been blamed for litter and congestion.
Dube said the proposed relocation programme was informed by research identifying suitable sites for organised vending.
Ncube said the current situation in the city centre could not be allowed to continue and called for coordinated action among all stakeholders.
The meeting resolved to convene an emergency planning session to develop modalities for relocating informal traders with the aim of improving sanitation, easing congestion and restoring order in Bulawayo's central business district.
Source - Southern Eye
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