Under the proposed budget, high density suburb residents will be paying $1,21 for water, $0,50 for sewerage in high density suburbs and $1 in the low density suburbs.
The deputy national spokesperson for the MDC-T, Tabitha Khumalo, hailed the budget.
“I think under the current times, the city fathers have tried to come up with a fair budget. I think both the residents and the council will benefit from this budget,” said Khumalo.
The Secretary of the Bulawayo Residents Association, Samuel Moyo, said the proposed management fees were very high considering that the council was not doing enough to collect refuse in the city’s high density suburbs.
“I think the proposed solid waste management fees are too high. Council is not doing much to collect refuse in the high density suburbs. I hope this increase will cater for the maintenance of infrastructure.” he said.
Moyo said council could have raised money through its commercial entities such as farms and liquor outlets without increasing the rates.
“Most residents are not settling their bill because they cannot afford the rates. The most affected are pensioners who are getting paltry monthly pensions. It’s not that people are not willing to settle their bills, they just do not have the money,” said Moyo.
Councillor Phinias Ndlovu of ward 14 defended the budget saying it was going to capacitate the cash-strapped council in order to facilitate improved service delivery.
“I support this budget as a proposal that will take council somewhere, especially with regards to refuse collection,” he said.
Presenting the budget before councillors and various council departmental heads in the council chambers, the chairperson of the council’s finance and development committee, Councillor Nduna Dladla, said the budget was a result of wide consultations among the city’s residents and stakeholders.
Post published in: News