Minister takes council to task over mismanagement

Dr Jorum Macdonald Gumbo

In his keynote address yesterday Minister Gumbo took a swipe at the Mhangimi  Commission accusing the city fathers and the entire administration of diverting road repair funds to salaries.

Gumbo described Gweru as the town with the worst, impassable roads in the province:
“Gweru council should take a leaf from book of the Bulawayo and Kwekwe councils who lead by example in utilising the funds they receive from the ZINARA to maintain raods.”

“Unlike Gweru, Kwekwe work tirelessly at improving their roads. During a recent visit to Kwekwe, I was most impressed by their construction of a well thought out terminus to de-congest traffic,” the minister added.

Dr Gumbo who is also the Zanu PF Provincial Chairperson added that Gweru council has unfortunately gained a reputation for in fighting rather than providing sound delivery service for their residents.

“Kwekwe has seven councillors from Zanu PF and seven from the MDC but when it comes to development, they put their political differences aside and effectively deliver a superb service. You should follow their example and avoid politicising development at all costs.”

“Despite the small amount of funds received from the ZINARA, this mining town thinks outside the box and has embarked on a Public/Private Partnership. Why doesn’t Gweru do the same instead of embarrassing itself?  One would think that Kwekwe was the capital of the Midlands,” said the Minister with a mischievous twinkle in his eye.

Most of Gweru’s road networks have outlived their lifespan. The most adversely affected areas are Southdowns and Ridgemont. The road to Midlands’s highest learning institution, namely MSU is badly infested with huge potholes and gullies.

A commuter who didn’t wish to be named agreed with Dr Gumbo.  He complained about the unnecessary vehicle wear and tear because of poor roads and protruding stones that also cause tyre damage.

Another resident, Ngonidzashe Povo echoed these sentiments, castigating Gweru city council for not prioritising road maintenance. Povo is of the opinion that the council tackles irrelevant projects and wastes money buying high class motor vehicles.