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Disappointed as 'Sunshine City' loses shine
Dumisani M Dube
October 10, 2004

http://www.thestandard.co.zw/read.php?st_id=726

Dear Editor - Allow me me space to express my disappointment at what has become of our Sunshine City where the sun shines no more.

Harare is in a pathetic state to say the least. What worries me is what the City Health Department is doing about it. Lately, I have been moving around the city centre doing my errands, but when nature calls my trips become a nightmare. The state of the public toilets is intolerable, and to make matters worse, fruit and vegetable markets are situated next to these dirty places.

Commuters bound for Chitungwiza and Sunningdale who board their buses at the Charge Office terminus are experiencing appalling conditions. One often finds exposed human waste next to vendors selling juicy looking apples, bananas and sometimes they (vendors) are busy cooking and selling food.

Those travelling to Dzivarasekwa or Westage who catch buses at Chinhoyi Street terminus have to contend not only with an infestation of street children but also the unbearable stench emanating from a nearby public toilet. Walking around the terminus one has to try and avoid stepping into puddles of dirty water mixed with oil and bits of discarded food from the dishes being washed nearby.

Kuwadzana and Warren Park residents have to contend with urine flowing from the toilet situated at the corner of Kwame Nkrumah and Chinhoyi Street. And piling up nearby is a growing mountain of rubbish that appears to be cleared only once a year. Right next to it is a fruit and vegetable market.

Does the city health department have any idea what happens to people who buy edibles from these dirty places? And what of those people who spend the whole day trying to earn a living from these makeshift market places? One wonders whether the City Health Department is worried or concerned about the health of people in the city.

As if this is not enough, theynow recruit their manpower from the Border Gezi national service institutions where young man and women are turned into tools of violence.

My own feeling is that they employ the these youths to harass people who are trying to earn an honest living through vending fruits and vegetables. In as much as I understand that vendors should be registered and pay a fee, it worries me when they are treated so heartlessly.

Chasing and confiscating goods from the vendors, most of them suffering individuals, is not only unfair but also cruel. It is heart rending to appreciate the predicament of the people being subjected to this sort of harassment. Many are poor people who invest the little money they have so that they can earn a living and support their families. It is sad that they are treated like criminals.

Under the supervision of the municipality the police and the youths chase after these men and women and take away their merchandise which they then share among themselves. Perhaps this is because there is not enough food at the Border Gezi camps so they have to steal from poor vendors. We may never know, but that is not my point. They claim that they are trying to keep the city clean - my foot!

Before they can clean the city of poor people they should, instead, direct their energies to situations that are a threat to the health of the public. They should, for instance,train the youths in plumbing so they can fix public toilets and clean the appalling streets of Harare than turning them into vicious, violent and heartless young thugs.

Let us remember, it is better to train the youths in what we would like them to become and not make them cannon fodder for immediate political gain.

Dumisani M Dube
Harare

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