Council in 4% rate hike

News
THE Bulawayo City Council yesterday resolved to increase rates by 4% at a stakeholder’s budget consultation meeting held at council chambers.

THE Bulawayo City Council yesterday resolved to increase rates by 4% at a stakeholder’s budget consultation meeting held at council chambers.

BATANAI MUTASA/ MILTON SITHOLE

The council has been consulting the public for recommendations towards the city’s 2015 budget and had suggested a rise in rates, while there was an option to maintain current charges.

A schedule of the proposed increased rates showed that the increments’ would be less than $2 across the city.

This would see suburbs like Emakhandeni paying an additional 71c to their rate bill, while households in Selbourne Park will be charged $1,97 more.

In defence of the budget, council finance director Kempton Ndimande said the effect of not increasing charges would be a depleted level of service delivery.

“Vandalism is affecting us so much and it costs money. For example, we installed street lights in some suburbs and cables were stolen,” he explained.

“There are resettled farmers who have realised that the pumps for sewerage management are useful and are a threat which we have to allay by stationing council police to guard them.

“These are some of the costs which extend our requirements for cash.”

Mayor Martin Moyo underlined challenges council was facing and implored the community to accept their facilitative role in development by paying for service delivery whose cost had risen, especially with the rise in fuel costs.

Questioned on residents’ ability to pay increased rates considering the high default ratio, Moyo said defaults were mostly a consequence of speculation, where residents believed their debts would be written off again.

“The government has assured us that the process will not be repeated and we have been instructed to collect what is due, but we do not want to take drastic measures, because as socialists we do not want to see people distressed,” he said.