Back to Index

This article participates on the following special index pages:

Newly elected Harare councillors finally sworn in 3 months after poll
Tererai Karimakwenda, SW Radio Africa
Jul 01, 2008

http://www.swradioafrica.com/news010708/hararecouncillors010708.htm

Harare councillors who were elected on March 29 have finally been sworn into office, and are expected to have their first meeting this week to elect a mayor and deputy mayor. The law in Zimbabwe stipulates that newly elected councillors should be sworn in within 48 hours after they are declared winners in an election. But the government has been operating outside the law and it has taken 3 months to conduct this simple ceremony, where they take an oath of allegiance and vow to serve the city. It is not clear whether councillors were sworn in other parts of the country.

Mike Davies, chairman of the Combined Harare Residents Association (CHRA) attended the ceremony at the Town House on Tuesday. He said the 3-month delay shows the Mugabe regime's contempt of the law. The government claimed that they were waiting for the results of the presidential runoff election before councillors could take office. Davies said one thing has nothing to do with other.

Of the 46 council seats that were contested in March, the MDC won an overwhelming majority of 45 of them. Davies described the Council as a policy making body, governed by the Urban Councils Act, with wide ranging powers to determine how the city is to be run. Councillors make decisions about issues such as budget approval, service delivery, employment policies and city planning. This means vital services like running water, refuse collection, road repairs and sewerage all fall under the responsibility of the Council.

It is hoped that the ruling party will not interfere with council operations, as they did when the local government minister Ignatius Chombo illegally removed the MDC Mayor Elias Mudzuri and the entire council 4 years ago. Since then the capital has been run by ZANU-PF appointed Commissions that have not been accountable to the ratepayers. Chombo also removed the Mayor and councillors in Mutare, Masvingo, Gweru and Kwekwe.

Service delivery deteriorated drastically as rates charged to residents skyrocketed. CHRA has been advocating a rates boycott which will now end. Davies said he hopes this will be a "new dawn" for the city that was once known as the "Sunshine City". But the council cannot resolve the broader political and economic crisis that has resulted from the failed policies of the Mugabe regime. Inflation is about 4 million percent and there are frequent power cuts and no running water for extended periods. There are also serious shortages of fuel and basic commodities. Davies said: "It is important that people have no false expectations."

Please credit www.kubatana.net if you make use of material from this website. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License unless stated otherwise.

TOP