BPRA demonstration against ZESA a success

Almost a thousand Bulawayo residents yesterday (Thursday 27 October 2011) took to the streets protesting poor service delivery by the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) and demanding the return of the Bulawayo Thermal Power Station to the residents. The demonstration was organised by Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association (BPRA). The demonstration began at 1000hrs at the large City Hall and proceeded to the ZESA Regional Offices where a speech was given by the BPRA Chairperson, Mr Reason Ngwenya.

The demonstration was aimed at demanding:

·         The return of the Bulawayo Thermal Power Station to the ownership of the people of Bulawayo
·         Full compliance with the ruling of the Competition and Tariffs Commission (CTC) to reduce charges by 43 percent.
·         Compensation for all people whose properties were damaged by power surges
·         Reduction in load shedding and adherence to load shedding schedules.
·         Exemption of disadvantaged people such as the elderly and orphans from immediate power disconnections for failure to meet payment obligations.

 Please visit http://facebook.com/uhlelo.lwezakhamizi for pictures of the demonstration

Residents to demonstrate against ZESA

PRESS RELEASE

Date:               24 October 2011

RESIDENTS TO DEMONSTRATE AGAINST ZESA

Bulawayo residents under the auspices of Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association (BPRA) will on Thursday 27 October 2011 stage a demonstration against the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA), protesting poor service delivery by the company and demanding the return of the Bulawayo Thermal Power Station to the residents. The demonstration will begin at 1000hrs at the large City Hall and proceed to the ZESA Regional Offices where a petition will be handed to ZESA regional management.

Central in the objectives of the demonstration is the return of the Bulawayo Thermal Power Station into the hands of residents through the Bulawayo City Council (BCC). Residents believe that if the BCC assumes control of the power station, it will do better in ensuring that the people of Bulawayo get better access to electricity at lower prices.

The grievances that residents have with ZESA’s conduct include high tariffs, unscheduled load shedding, slow reaction to faults, failure to follow the ruling of the Competition and Tariffs Commission (CTC), disconnections for households with outstanding bills and failure to compensate people whose properties were damaged by power surges.

The demonstration will be held on the first anniversary of another demonstration against ZESA that was held on 27 October in 2010. A year on, ZESA has made no progress in improve its service delivery, with standards sliding further while the parastal’s executives drive luxury cars and earn fat salaries. On the other hand, residents continue to spend long hours without electricity, spending fortunes on candles and firewood. The parastal has also failed to appreciate the dire economic situation that the country finds itself in, charging exorbitant tariffs when most people are unemployed while those who are employed are earning paltry salaries. Also, ZESA has made no effort to consider the plight of disadvantaged sectors of society such as senior citizens, pensioners and orphans whose electricity is also disconnected when they fail to pay bills.

The demonstrations is thus aimed at demanding:

• The return of the Bulawayo Thermal Power Station to the ownership of the people of Bulawayo
• Full compliance with the ruling of the Competition and Tariffs Commission (CTC) to reduce charges by 43 percent.
• Compensation for all people whose properties were damaged by power surges
• Reduction in load shedding and adherence to load shedding schedules.
• Exemption of disadvantaged people such as the elderly and orphans from immediate power disconnections for failure to meet payment obligations.
• That ZESA should work on its flawed billing system and stop estimating bills.

PRESS RELEASE

Date:               19 October 2011

BPRA calls for transparency in handling of DIMAF

Bulawayo Progressive Residents Associations (BPRA) is calling for transparency in the administration of the US$ 40 million that was availed by treasury for the revival of industry in Bulawayo under the Distressed and Marginalised Areas Fund (DIMAF). While welcoming the fund as a step in the right direction with regards to resuscitating industry in Bulawayo, BPRA believes measures should be put in place to ensure that the funds reach the intended beneficiaries, ailing businesses in the city. In line with this, the association proposes that there should be thorough vetting and verification in the handling of the funds to ensure that business operators from outside Bulawayo do not get the funds at the expense of local operators.

Firstly, the vetting and verification procedure should look into the history of the companies seeking funds to ensure that they are companies that have always operated in Bulawayo. Consonant with this, the shareholding/ownership structures of the companies should be tracked to ensure that there have been no suspicious ownership changes or takeovers in recent months as people from outside Bulawayo seek to get their hands on the funds through acquiring Bulawayo based firms.

Secondly, measures should be put in place, for instance through binding contracts, to ensure that companies that benefit from DIMAF do not relocate to areas outside Bulawayo after accessing the funds. The contracts could for example tie companies to Bulawayo for ten years.

Importantly, BPRA proposes that the funds should only be awarded to companies on the basis of clear and concise business proposals showing how the company will utilise the money to eventually make a profit. Companies with no clear business strategy should not be given the funds. This would ensure that the US$40 million, although insufficient on its own to revive Bulawayo’s waning industry, is put to optimum use.

In addition, BPRA proposes that the government should ensure that the companies that benefit from DIMAF employ Bulawayo residents as opposed to bringing workers from outside the city. This is very important as thousands of Bulawayo residents have been rendered jobless by the de-industrialisation of Bulawayo.

Lastly, for the purposes of transparency, BPRA believes that a list of all the beneficiaries of DIMAF should be made public. This is the main way that can be used to ensure that the funds are received by the intended beneficiaries. Should any undeserving company or individual receive the funds, publicising a list would serve the function of naming and shaming corrupt stakeholders in the administration of the funds.

Bulawayo suburbs marred with illegal dumpsites

Residents from Bulawayo’s 29 wards have expressed disappointment towards the Bulawayo City Council (BCC) for its continued failure to deliver its services diligently. Most high density suburbs are marred with illegal dumpsites due to the fact that the city council is failing to collect refuse frequently and efficiently. Most residents are therefore forced to keep rubbish heaped in their yards. As the heaps grow bigger residents then resort to dumping the refuse in bushes or trenches around the suburb. While there is a fine for embarking on environmentally unfriendly activities like dumping refuse on undesignated places in residential areas, policing on the ground is minimal, hence the proliferation of rubbish dumps in residential areas. This is an imminent health hazard especially considering that the rainy season has just started. Cholera, a scourge that has previously hit the country, could strike again. Residents also complained that the city council was giving ground for multiple problems to occur. If the people get any form of infection, as a result of the BCC’s failure to deliver, clinics will fail to cater for them as well because they are under capacitated. The city council has been urged to revise its priorities and focus on what matters most to the people. Residents are aware that the council claims to have three refuse collection vehicles yet it still fails to improve refuse collection.

Maintenance of the natural habitat should be a priority

Residents from Mahatshula medium density suburb in Ward 3 that took part in BPRA’s inaugural tree planting day commemorations that were held in May 2011 have reported that the trees they planted have only been watered twice in the past four months. On the day of the commemorations it was stated that the city council employees in the various wards that took part in the commemorations would be responsible for watering the trees using council mobile bowsers. Residents said they only witnessed the watering on two occasions. The residents have stressed that the local authority should communicate with residents on a regular basis so that residents are well versed with critical issues of service delivery in their area – issues such as that of provision of resources for maintenance of recreational facilities such as parks and soccer pitches. The residents suggested that BCC should drill a borehole that will provide water to the residents in the area. The same borehole could be used to water the wilting trees that were planted in May 2011. Bulawayo has been hard hit by deforestation as residents fetch firewood as a substitute for electricity on a daily basis. Due to this, it is important for the city fathers to proactively take part in initiatives aimed at restoring the environment. BPRA believes that maintenance of the environment is a critical component of sustainable development, hence its commemoration of World Environment Day in May 2011.

Parasite infested areas need urgent attention

Nkulumane residents have stated that BCC should, as part of its budget priorities, consider procuring pesticides. The suburb has a number of streams that are known to be breeding ground for parasites. Residents have therefore appealed to the city council to see to the provision of pesticides before the rainy season begins. Residents have said that this is not the season for cutting grass but the only option available to curb the challenge facing them is to spray well in time before mosquitos and other such parasites infest residential areas. BPRA ward secretaries for health have previously conducted clean up campaigns in the city and in some instances paid particular attention to specific worst affected areas. Considering the importance of maintaining cleanliness and avoiding health hazards, residents have said that they will dedicate their time to spraying worst affected areas if the municipality or other willing organisations provide the necessary equipment and pesticides. It is on record that residents have volunteered to work with various organisations, like as BPRA, Zimbabwe Democracy and Development Trust (ZDDT) and World Vision to name a few, for the betterment of the community.

BPRA activities for the week (10 October to 15 October 2011)

This week, Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association (BPRA) will be holding four consultative meetings and a local governance symposium as part of the Ideas Festival that is on this week. The four consultative meetings will be held in ward 11 (Emakhandeni Hall), ward10 (Entumbane Hall) ward 15 (Luveve Beit Hall), and in Ward 19 (Old Pumula Hall) on Tuesday 11 October 2011 (2pm – 4pm), Wednesday 12 October 2011 (11am-1pm), Wednesday 12 October 2011 (2pm – 4pm) and Thursday 13 October 2011 (2pm –4pm) respectively. The meetings will discuss issues of service delivery in the wards, and will be attended by the respective ward councillors. The local governance symposium will be held at Stanley Hall in Makokoba on Friday14 October 2011 from 8am to 4pm.

Residents fume over council housing policy

Residents in Bulawayo have expressed dismay with the Bulawayo City council (BCC) as it has emerged that women with children cannot apply for housing stands unless they do so with their spouses or produce proof that the father of the child is deceased. Effectively, this means that single mothers are illegible to apply for stands. Although the city council’s public relations department disputed this, investigations by BPRA proved this to be true. Officers handling applications for stands revealed that the policy was designed to prevent couples from acquiring more than one stand on the pretext that they have separated. This has been seen by women in the city, especially single mothers as an affront to the right of single mothers to have decent shelter, and also as a form of discrimination against single women. Residents argued that single mothers should be allowed to seek housing stands just like their married counterparts, and like everyone else.

Exempt the elderly from power disconnections

Residents from Njube, Luveve and Mabuthweni in Bulawayo are calling for the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority (ZESA) to exempt senior citizens from power disconnections for failure to pay outstanding rates. This comes as the parastatal has intensified disconnections, moving into the suburbs in the last fortnight. Already, hundreds of households across the city have been disconnected for debts ranging from US$200 to over US$1000. Residents reason that the elderly should be exempted from disconnections as they are already on retirement and therefore unable to earn salaries that can meet all obligations since pensions are currently very low, with some pensioners getting below US$50 a month. Meanwhile, residents say they are irked by the power disconnections as they show that ZESA is not concerned about the plight of the people, most of whom are unemployed or earn paltry salaries and hence cannot effort to pay ZESA. Residents also believe that the rates are exorbitant in light of the economic climate prevailing in the country.