SERVICE delivery in Zimbabwe’s capital has been temporarily shelved amid power struggles within the MDC-run Harare City Council, Zim Morning Post can report.
While service delivery in Harare has continued to deteriorate on the back of rising inflation, shortage of cash and liquidity crisis, impeccable sources say Council Chamber fights are now the order of the day.
Sources say the upheavals are centred on the shuffling of Council thematic Committees.
Zim Morning Post understands that the committees targeted for a shake up include Human Resources, Finance and Development, Informal Sector as well as the Information and Publicity Committees.
“These committees are said to be chaired by Councillors who don’t subscribe to MDC Alliance deputy secretary for Local Government Clifford Hlatswayo and Harare Mayor Hebert Gomba’s way of doing things,” an MDC councillor told Zim Morning Post requesting not to be named for fear of reprisals.
“All this is being done despite that the committees have a resolution to last till mid 2021,” another source said.
One MDC councillor accused Hlatswayo of ordering councillors to send him fuel money or face his wrath.
Reached for comment Hlatswayo said as MDC Alliance deputy secretary for Local Government he was doing all he can to ensure that Harare City Council was working to find solutions to the mirage of challenges facing ratepayers.
“I am hearing these allegations for the first time,” said Hlatswayo.
He insisted that the allegations were the work of detractors bent on trying to destabilise the party.
“If they are divisions within council they are not pronounced at the level that we have seen. I had a meeting today with the Mayor and yesterday I had a meeting with the council chief whip and I was never alerted to the allegations that you are mentioning. If anything, we are trying as hard as we can to ensure that the committees are delivering on their mandate,” he added.
“Myself and Mr Mudzuri don’t have a direct role in the running of council. We only play a supervisory role. A Mayor has been chosen and he has the power to run council the way he sees fit.”
