Residents denounces political parties meddling in community initiatives

Harare Residents Trust has blasted political parties for meddling in the community initiatives to highjack people's projects and claim responsibility for the achievements.

The Trust said Harare City Council Town Clerk Tendai Mahachi on Wednesday went to Kamunhu Shopping Centre as part of the Zanu-PF campaign team, accompanying Ignatius Chombo, the Zanu-PF Secretary for Administration (Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing), Saviour Kasukuwere, the Political Commissar (Minister of Water, Climate and Environment), Ward 46 Councillor Luckmore Mangava, and Terrence Mukupe, the Zanu PF candidate for Harare East.

"This becomes the first time that Dr Mahachi has left his office to go to a community to attend to a service delivery meeting," the Trust said.

"At the same time the local MDC-T Member of Parliament James Maridadi came out with guns blazing against Chombo, denouncing the 10 June 2015 by-elections and promising that his party would wallop Zanu PF in 2018. When introducing the Harare City Councillors, Honourable Maridadi clearly separated Mangava as your councillor, addressing Chombo, and our councillors, when introducing Councillor Barnabas Ndira (Ward 21), Joseph Rose (Ward 20) and Munyaradzi Kufahakutizwi (Ward 19)."

The Trust said the truth is that this was announced as a community clean up campaign, where residents, their councillors and community anti-litter monitors were scheduled to conduct a clean up at Kamunhu Business Centre with Lafarge cement providing brooms, bibs and refreshments to cleaners while the City of Harare's Waste management was supposed to bring in their refuse collection equipment like front-end loaders, tippers and other cleaning materials like plastic bins, gloves and mouth guards.

"The City of Harare did not provide any materials for the clean up, and brooms and plastic bins were provided by Lafarge," said the Trust.

"Surprisingly, when residents turned up putting on their t-shirts, they were ordered to go back and come without residents' association t-shirts, and there were no council workers in sight, except for the woman who sweeps around Kamunhu Shopping Centre."

The Trust said the clean up was converted into a party political gathering, with Zanu PF officials openly displaying their party banners, and their campaign vehicles plastered with Mukupe posters.

"This should never be allowed to happen. if a political party wants to conduct a clean up campaign, the City of Harare must not be used to deceive residents who genuinely want a clean and health environment," said the Trust.

"A lot of residents had turned up but left disappointed after the MDC-T and Zanu PF officials openly clashed and expressed partisan comments instead of speaking to the issue of uncollected garbage and building a community movement to maintain a clean and health environment."

The organisation said the intended impact of the clean up was lost to political bickering. Lafarge Cement risk losing its credibility among residents of Mabvuku and Tafara if they do not stay clear of partisan community activities.

"The company should continue in its efforts to build a sustainable relationship with residents' leadership by not allowing the things they would have pledged to do for the community to be hijacked by partisan leaders who announce them as their own party initiatives," said the Trust.