Harare Council rot, a result of ‘grade one’ graduates running council
It was revealed that councillors are not elected through qualifications but just that they are aged 18 years and older according to the laws of the country.
Harare -In a shocking revelation the councillors running the city of Harare lack adequate education and knowledge to effectively direct policy, a commission of inquiry investigating the running of the city heard.
The five member commission of inquiry headed by retired Justice Maphios Cheda heard from councillor, Blessing Duma, the chairperson of the Audit Committee that some councillors do not have good qualifications equating them to ‘dunderheads’.
“If you go through the CVs of the councillors at the Town House you would be shocked,” Duma said.
Duma was responding to a question of what qualifications he holds as the chairperson of the Audit Committee to which he said he has journalism and wildlife management qualifications.
He said councillors are not elected through qualifications but just that they are aged 18 years and older according to the laws of the country.
“Even one (a person) with a Grade 1 qualification can be a elected a councillor,” he said.
Duma said councillors win local government elections and are sworn-in into the council not based on qualifications.
He said what follows is that councillors choose the committees they want to sit on and they then choose a chairperson and deputy chair of that particular committee.
“We only know about someone’s qualifications later on,” Duma told the commission of inquiry.
“Don’t you think you are better off running after elephants?” Cheda told Duma leaving public gallery attending hearing in stitches.
“You have no qualifications in accounts,” Justice Cheda said referring to Duma’s lqck of accounting qualifications to head the audit committee.
Duma repeated claims he made last week that Harare City Council (HCC) is corrupt.
“The city of Harare is rotten to the core,” Duma said.
He agreed that the HCC has been engaging in illegal activities over the years.
Duma said council was in contempt of a court order after the councillors ignored a court order to demolish houses built by illegal land invaders at Crowborough farm.
The council had won a court order to evict illegal land invaders who had built houses on the council farm but councillors defied the court order and regularized that the invaders to stay on.
Duma said his committee has been denied information by council to check books on the operations of Rufaro Marketing, City Parking and Harare Quarry which are owned by the city.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa appointed a commission of inquiry to probe governance issues at HCC in May.
Harare residents have long complained about poor service delivery by the council in Zimbabwe’s capital.
