BULAWAYO - Service delivery in this city is set to improve significantly following the acquisition of 14 brand new service vehicles by the local authority last week. Like another councils in the country, Bulawayo City Council has for a long time been struggling to deliver quality service to the community due to its ageing fleet, among other reasons. Most of the council vehicles are more than 20 years old. Speaking at the commissioning ceremony for the vehicles, which were financed through a loan scheme, the deputy mayor, Amen Mpofu, said the constant breakdown of council vehicles had seriously affected service delivery.
In line with councils fleet management policy of 2004, it has always been our aim to reduce the age of our fleet to less than 10 years old. However this has been impossible due to the economic meltdown of the past decade, said Mpofu. He said 85% of the councils fleet of 280 was more than 20 years old.
Production time was lost due to constant breakdowns. These vehicles will enable council to improve service provision and hopefully set us on a road to recovery, said Mpofu. He said by the end of this year the council should have been able to replace 52 medium and light vehicles for service delivery, five refuse compactor trucks, four ambulance, two minibuses and one X Backhoe Loader.
Mpofu urged council employees to ensure that the vehicles were not abused. The vehicles are meant to service the community and not individuals who do not respect their employers, the residents, he added.
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Sounds like a good investment, just need to see how many last more than 2 years.