THE Gweru City Council has disbanded its revenue collection enhancement taskforce after it emerged that it was no longer effective.
BY Stephen Chadenga
The taskforce, comprising of workers and council management, was set up in April this year to enhance revenue collection.
At its peak, the team collected almost $80 000 per day from defaulters – grossing $1,4 million between May 7 and June 9 against the council’s monthly target of $1,1 million.
The figures later dropped to less than $40 000, prompting its dissolution.
Although chairperson of the caretaker commission running council affairs, Tsunga Mhangami was not available for comment yesterday, workers committee spokesperson, Cornelia Selipiwe, who was part of the team, confirmed the development.
“It is true that the revenue enhancement taskforce has since been dissolved,” Selipiwe said.
“Workers who were deployed to the team have since reverted to their respective departments and it’s now work as usual.”
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Gweru has been struggling to operate viably following a government directive in 2013 that forced all local authorities to cancel outstanding bills accrued since dollarisation.
The directive by then Local Government minister Ignatius Chombo left a number of councils unable to pay salaries on time and constrained from providing reliable services.
Meanwhile, residents in Gweru’s populous Mtapa suburb have slammed the city council for letting sewer pipes burst go unattended for two months, exposing them to diseases.
The residents said the burst sewers in Mtapa’s Section 6 were a health hazard particulary to children, as they, enjoyed playing in the sewer ponds.
“It’s now two months and we have overflowing sewage in our area,” said Mtapa resident James Chiseko.
“We have reported the burst sewer to council several times but no action is being taken to address the problem.”
Another resident, Letwina Dube said she was contemplating leaving the suburb because of the burst sewers that are a recurrent feature in Mtapa.
“I have been a lodger in Mtapa for five years now, but I am seriously considering leaving the place because this problem of overflowing sewer has become a perennial problem for us,” she said.
Selipiwe urged council to prioritise quality service delivery to ratepayers.
He said several other high- density suburbs were facing a similar problem.
Acting director of health services, Christopher Ruwodo was not available for comment, but Ward 4 councillor Kenneth Sithole last year told stakeholders to a service delivery meeting that the city faced a serious challenge of obsolete pipes, some of which he said had not been replaced for over 30 years now.
