Chombo to abolish council bodies | The Zimbabwe Daily
Chombo to abolish council bodies
Local Government, Public Works and National Housing Minister Ignatius Chombo
âI wish to underscore that this is my last attendance to such a meeting in the name of UCAZ,â said Minister Chombo. âMy ministry shall only recognise zilga as the only body representing all councils. This objective should be achieved by mid-2015 without failure.
âYou will agree that local authorities, whether rural or urban are established for the same purpose and to execute the same mandate. All local authorities are created largely to proffer municipal services and to facilitate the interface between the State and the citizenry.â
Minister Chombo said the associationsâ mandate would be best realised when local authorities are operating in one direction and speaking with one voice.
âIn this respect, the ministry has already drafted a single Local Government Bill that is meant to regulate the operations of all local authorities in the country irrespective of location and size,â he said.
âIt is, therefore, expected that the two local government associations in the name of UCAZ and ARDC shall collapse to serve all the local authorities in a uniform and consistent manner.â
Minister Chombo said that UCAZ, which was formed by colonialists in 1923, was a settler organisation whose time had come to pass. He advised councils to take necessary action against defaulting ratepayers and ordered residents to pay for services provided to them.
âCouncils should do whatever is necessary to keep the councils running and this should be done as a matter of urgency,â said Minister
Chombo. âIt is the duty of residents to pay for the services that they get from the council. We canât have some residents enjoying services for free yet others are paying. Itâs unfair.
âWe understand that most residents are struggling financially, but we have already come up with measures such as the payment plans to cater for such people. How do people expect the councils to run smoothly yet they go for years without paying? It is that disappearance that we canât accept.â