BULAWAYO - The cash-strapped Zimbabwe Passenger Company (ZUPCO) has been evicted from its Bulawayo Kelvin North depot by the city council for failing to meet its arrears which amount to US$71 000, it has emerged. According to latest council minutes, the city council has already repossessed the depot. The local authority and the then-Rhodesian Omnibus Company (now ZUPCO) entered into a franchise agreement with the council in 1979 where the parastatal was given the exclusive rights to provide transport in all urban centres. It was also agreed that local authorities would provide depots and all associated accessories such as ranks and bus stops while collecting monthly rental from ZUPCO.
The arrangement has been renewed every year until the year 2000 when the company started experiencing serious viability problems.
The company is owed thousands of dollars by Zanu (PF) which has been using ZUPCO buses free of charge to transport their supporters to party congresses and other party functions.
During a full council meeting the councillors resolved that council should enter into a new lease agreement for the depot while the company was asked to settle all arrears.
Acting mayor, Amen Mpofu, defended the councils move to withdraw the property saying it was useless for ZUPCO to continue clinging on to the depot while they were no longer using the facility.
In June this year, ZUPCO was also booted out from premises it was leasing in Kwekwe.
Post published in: News