In 2013 the Country adopted, by a massive majority, a new national Constitution that, for the first time, adopted the principle of devolution. The new Constitution makes it absolutely clear that the rights and the powers required to Govern in the broadest sense, local government areas, and lies with the elected Councils responsible.
Despite this new dispensation, which now takes precedence over all existing legislation, the Minister has continued to abuse his position and to defy the tenets of the Constitution by continuing the onslaught on urban Councils. The reasons for this onslaught are political as the Minister seeks to ensure that elected Councils do not deliver on their mandates and that the Zanu PF Party is able to maintain its indirect control and interference in Council affairs.
The present wave of illegal actions began in Gweru where the Minister, using the Urban Councils Act, dismissed two Councilors and suspended the entire Council, replacing it with a Commission which has now been running the Council for a year. The Commissioners are drawing fees and allowances of over $1000 a day and have taken steps to appoint, illegally, senior staff on a totally partisan basis. In addition, a Company controlled by a relative of member of the Commission has been awarded a contract to conduct an “audit” of water supplies without due process.
The MDC took the Minister to Court on constitutional grounds and both the Courts in Gweru and the High Court in Bulawayo have ruled that the Minister has acted unconstitutionally and ordered the elected Councils to resume their duties. Despite this when they attempted to return to their duties, the Mayor was arrested and held without charge and the Councilors found themselves locked out of their offices on the instruction of the Minister.
In flagrant violation of his obligations to implement and respect the Constitution and the decisions of the Courts, the Minister has appealed the decision to the Supreme Court. In desperation the MDC has now taken steps to have the clauses in the Urban Councils Act that are unconstitutional, ruled as such by the Constitutional Court, to try and put an end to this activity in the absence of any attempt by the Ministry to redraft the Act in compliance with the Constitution.
Then the Minister turned his attention to the affairs of Harare City Council. This is the largest local authority in the Country with responsibility for the welfare and living conditions of one third of the population of Zimbabwe. The result is that Councils affairs are now in a shambles, disputes over the appointment of a new Town Clerk after the dismissal of the previous incumbent who was a partisan appointment, has resulted in the “suspension” of the Mayor and an attempt to stop the new Town Clerk taking up his appointment.
It must be noted that the selection and appointment of the Town Clerk, Mr. James Mushore, took place after a lengthy process which involved advertising the vacancy and inviting applications, the professional short listing of suitably qualified applicants and then interviews conducted by a panel drawn from the Council and a professional human resources firm. In the final process it was clear that Mr. Mushore was the best candidate, by far, and the Council subsequently agreed to appoint him as Town Clerk.
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