CHRA weekly update

This week CHRA made an inquiry at ZINWA with regards to
the water crisis. ZINWA is bankrupt to the extent of failing to pay salaries
to its employees’. ZINWA workers went on strike last week, but some of them
returned to work after the Reserve Bank bailed out ZINWA. However, staff
moral remains extremely low to the extent that some of the workers are not
reporting for duty while others are boycotting their assignments. Low staff
moral and the subsequent lack of commitment is one of the chief reasons why
it takes ages for ZINWA to reconnect water supplies where a breakdown would
have occurred or supplies cut.

ZINWA has also run out of water treatment chemicals, a situation that has
led to a massive decrease in the water production. With water production
remaining very low, there is no hope that ZINWA will be able to bring back
water supply to those areas that are already dry. Rather the water crisis is
set to worsen as ZINWA’s woes deepen. CHRA also notes with concern that
ZINWA managers are not aware of some of the water disconnections in Harare;
despite the fact that some of those disconnections would have been in
existence for months. This alone, clearly shows the lack of seriousness of
the ZINWA management in discharging their duties.

Meanwhile, the State, through the ‘Deputy Minister’ of Water, has issued a
statement on water crisis, in which they have vowed that they will not
reverse the ZINWA take over of water supply management from the city
council. CHRA immediately dismissed the ‘Minister’s statement as
irresponsible, insensitive and they smack of a ‘Minister’ who has political
scores to settle against the legitimate City Council and indeed the
residents of Harare. CHRA reiterates that the decision by the Government to
take away water supply responsibility from the council and to ZINWA is the
backbone of the water crisis.  ZINWA has no technical and financial capacity
whatsoever to manage Harare water supply. ZINWA is hopelessly incompetent.

It is surprising that the ‘Minister’ is not concerned with the fact that
some residents have gone for two years without running water. The ‘Minister’
is not saddened by the sight of little school children carrying huge water
containers to school as school authorities order students to bring water to
school. His heart is not touched by the sight of residents trooping down
stream with containers to fetch water from unprotected wells sunk closer to
the sewage drainage system. CHRA wonders what kind of a ‘Minister’ is he,
and if ever he is there to serve the people or for petty personal
aggrandizement. CHRA categorically condemns Walter Muzembi and take his
utterances as not only childish but also reckless. However, CHRA assures the
‘Minister’ that the Association will not simply watch while the residents
suffer in perpetuity. Meanwhile CHRA reiterates that the Association is in
solidarity with Mayors Masunda and Marange’s call for the reversal of the
ZINWA takeover. In that regard, the Association reasserts its demand for the
return of water supply management to Town House.
Electricity supply

Electricity supply remains critically low. CHRA notes that in the past week,
Kuwadzana Extension, Glen View, Dzivarasekwa, Hatfield, Waterfalls, parts of
Mt Pleasant, Mabvuku/Tafara, Highlands, Mufakose, Kambuzuma and Warren Park
were the most affected areas. Residents in Glen view (ward one), Kuwadzana
Extension and the Avenues (Shingai court) continue to live in darkness as
ZESA has failed to return electricity supply for the past three months. ZESA
is failing to repair damaged transformers. The authority is in fact advising
residents in the affected areas to finance the repairs of the damaged
electricity transformers. Whilst the Association condemns the actions of the
criminals who are destroying transformers in search of oil, CHRA once again
reminds ZESA that it is its duty to secure ZESA property and ensure that
residents have electricity. The residents cannot be penalized for ZESA’s own
inefficiencies as reflected by its failure to come up with a solution to the
problem of vandalism. CHRA also reminds ZESA that they must stick to their
load shedding timetables. Meanwhile CHRA receives reports from other cities
and towns concerning electricity supply. Residents of Masvingo town get
electricity between 11pm and 3am only every day of the week. CHRA demands
the state to prioritize electricity generation and save the residents from
the agony they go through as a result of the unavailability of electricity.
Sewage and Waste management

CHRA notes with relief that the council has started the process of refuse
collection in some parts of the city. However, piles of uncollected refuse
continue to increase in most parts of the city notably Mabvuku, Tafara,
Mbare, Sunningdale, Budiriro and Mufakose. CHRA urges the council to speed
up the process of refuse collection. The residents have the right to a clean
environment!

In Mabvuku (Matongo shops and Mabvuku Bus terminus) there are pools of
sewage that have gone unattended for weeks. This result from sewage that is
not serviced as a result of no water supply. When water supply is restored
sewage pipes burst making life unbearably to residents.

ZINWA’s incapacity continues to show its ugly face in the collapsing sewer
reticulation system for the city of Harare. ZINWA took over the water supply
and sewer reticulation management from the council. Raw sewage pouring out
from burst drainage pipes and spreading across the roads and ground is a
common sight in suburbs like Mufakose and Dzivarasekwa. As a result of the
poor drainage system, raw sewage is gushing out from toilets in
Dzivarasekwa. This has forced some residents to stop using their toilets.
CHRA members confronted the ZINWA officers to fix the problem. However the
employees told CHRA members that ZINWA management has failed to provide them
with protective clothing and treatment for them to carry out their duties.
As a result the employees cannot rectify the sewage problems. In
Dzivarasekwa, raw sewage pours across the gardens, a development that is
threatening the very survival of the residents. Most residents sell green
vegetables for a living, while they also rely on the vegetables for their
daily meals.
The Bread Basket

The Reserve Bank Governor unveiled the monetary policy, which saw 10 zeroes
being removed. For instance zw$10 000 000 000 (zw10 billion) will now be
read as zw$1 (0ne dollar). Most residents expressed their lack of confidence
in the RBZ governor and his monetary policy’s ability to address the
economic crisis. The residents have not yet forgotten that the RBZ Governor
once removed the zeroes from the currency, but that did not help matters as
inflation continued to deepen unabated. It did not take long before the same
Zeroes returned in even large quantities.

The RBZ also increased the maximum withdrawal limit from zw$100 billion to
zw$2 trillion (Revalued to zw$200). Whilst this is still not enough to buy a
few household items, most residents are not able to access their monies as
the banks have suddenly run out of cash; amid suspicion that the RBZ did not
put enough quantities of money into circulation. The residents are also
worried that the value of the maximum withdrawal limit will be eroded by
inflation by the end of the month.

The residents slammed the RBZ for calling for salaries and prizes freeze.
Whilst it is possible to freeze the salaries, the same cannot be done to
prizes because the latter is determined by market forces. Therefore, to
freeze salaries is to further condemn the residents and indeed the rest of
the citizens deeper into poverty. The wages and salaries are already low as
inflation erodes the purchasing value.

The RBZ’s BARCOSSI programme is underway in Harare, amid reports that only
ZANU PF supporters can access the goods. CHRA received such reports against
the background of the active role that ZANU PF structures play in the
process of recruiting beneficiaries. CHRA demands that ZANU PF structures
must be kept far away and out of the process of identifying beneficiaries
for the BACCOSSI programme. Further, the goods being provided under BACCOSSI
are a mere drop in an ocean given the huge numbers of residents who are
starving. Approximately 2 million residents are starving in Harare. The ban
on NGO driven humanitarian programs remain in place. CHRA reiterates its
demand for the immediate lifting of this ban for the sake of saving millions
of people from dying of hunger and malnutrition.

Meanwhile, last week’s bread basket table stands as follows;

 Goods/Service
 Week 13-19 July 2008
 Week19-26 July 2008
 Week 26 July-02 August 2008

1
 10 kg Mealie meal
 600 billion
 2,8 trillion
 2,9 trillion

2
 750ml Cooking oil
 300 billion
 1,2 trillion
 1,4 trillion

3
 200g Salt
 100 billion
 350 billion
 355 billion

4
 6 kgs Economy Beef @ $900/kg billion
 3 trillion
 5,4 trilion
 5,4 trillion

5
 Transport per week @ 100 billion ( up from 80 billion the previous week)
per person per trip, where 1 person works in town, and 3 children commute to
school, 5 days a week
 1,680 trillion
 3,840 trillion
 4,2 trillion

6
 4 loaves of bread @ 350billion(up from $300 billion the previous  week) per
loaf x 7 days
 2,8 trillion
 8,4 trillion
 9,8 trillion

7
 2 kg sugar
 250 billion
 640 billion
 700 billion

8
 30g Tea bags
 100 billion
 300 billion
 300 billion

9
 250g Butter
 200 billion
 640 billion
 700 billion

10
 6 litres of drink @ $1,2 trillion (up from $1trillion the previous  week)
per 2litres
 600 billion
 3 trillion
 3,6 trillion

11
 Bathing soap
 –
 –
 400 billion

 Total
 9,630 trillion
 26,57 trillion
 29,755 trillion

N.B shortages of cash forced the Zim Dollar to stabilize against the U.S
Dollar which also had an impact on prices somehow stabilizing. This is
however temporary as prices have begun to skyrocket.

The political Environment

The political atmosphere in Harare and the rest of the country remains tense
despite reports that the inter party talks are progressing well. A snap
survey carried out by CHRA across Harare indicates that, communities were
deeply traumatized by the post March 29 elections political violence. Many
people are not yet comfortable to engage in political discussions while in
public. The residents are still living in fear as they suspect that the
situation may deteriorate at any time, just in the same way that it suddenly
deteriorated after March 29 2008. The residents have no confidence in the
seriousness of the ruling party ZANU PF in terms of its commitment to
allowing political tolerance given the magnitude of state sponsored violence
visited upon the residents following ZANU PF defeat in the March 29
elections. NGO and civic society field activities remain banned, despite the
state’s assurance to allow and exercise tolerance. The politicization of the
state sponsored BACCOSSI goods is another case in point. Most residents
interviewed are of the view that SADC and the AU must constitute and
dispatch teams that continuously assess the situation on the ground, because
the situation remains tense despite the assurances by the state that there
will be tolerance.  CHRA also suggests that both ZANU PF and MDC leaders
must hold public meetings in the communities, assuring the residents that
the days of political coercion are gone and gone for good. 

By Barnaba Mangodza