HARARE - Ongoing extensions to a house belonging to a senior Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe official, Munyaradzi Kereke, have set tongues wagging in Mount Pleasant suburb. Many suspect he is constructing a state-of-the-art clinic. Kereke is the advisor to the RBZ governor, Gideon Gono. He also features among Zanu (PF) officials currently restricted from travelling to the European Union and other Western countries. Residents who live in the neighbourhood said they were suspicious that the current developments were more than just extensions. “He has submitted a planning application to the City Council for Special Consent to convert his residential property into a 24-hour emergency Medical Centre,” said one resident, who requested anonymity.
Among other things, the resident claimed the new state-of-the-art clinic would have a “24-hour emergency centre, 24-hour ambulance services, 24-hour pharmacy, fully-fledged medical laboratories, CT scanners and ultrasound equipment, and eye, dental and other medical advisory services”. “All this would be on a normal one-acre plot in the middle of a residential area at 92 Norfolk Road, Mount Pleasant,” said the source.
But Kereke denied the claims, saying he was merely extending his house. He said he did not have plans to develop it or any of his properties into a medical facility. “It is just a housing extension,” said Kereke. “I have got stamped papers from the Harare City Council to prove this. It is certainly not true that I am converting the house into a clinic. I know there are some people who just go about making this claim, I don’t know why.” Council spokesperson Leslie Gwindi was not immediately available for comment. But Warship Dumba, the councillor for Ward 17, said he was aware of the residents’ concerns about the project but would not give any details.
“I have received concerns from some residents, we are looking into the issue,” Dumba said. Construction workers are busy on the project. They said all they were doing was refurbishing the house in line with the specifications they had received. But another resident was adamant the extension was the first phase of the surgery. “Everyone here knows that it is a surgery,” said another resident, who requested anonymity. “We have gathered that he will first disguise the project as a housing extension, and once it is approved, he will apply for permission to convert the premises into a surgery.”
Post published in: News