In an interview with the Zimpapers Elections Desk, Clr
Mguni said during his term his council worked well with the Government that
provided both guidance and assistance in addressing essential issues that
uplifted and eased the lives of Bulawayo residents.
He said the Second Republic has come up with a number of
deliberate interventions to resolve some of the problems that have dogged
Bulawayo for a very long time, adding that significant progress had been made
on the Gwayi-Shangani Dam which was a long-term solution to the city’s
perennial water shortages.
The Government also intervened on the road network after
the city revealed that 75 percent of its roads needed rehabilitation as they
have outlived their lifespan. Clr Mguni said there was cooperation between his
council and the Second Republic in resolving the city’s challenges which
underscored the President’s commitment to working with local authorities to
find sustainable solutions to challenges faced by residents.
“What is very important and key, which some people lose
sight of, is that being in local government, you are part of Government. Local
authorities are quasi-Government institutions; they are agents of Government.
There is no Government for Bulawayo, Harare or Gweru, we all serve under one
Government and it is very important to follow Government policies and
directives.
“I know some people will be quick to say, you are weak, if
you follow Government policies and you are in the opposition, however, it is
always important that if there are any Government policies and directives, in
terms of law, you try as much as possible to stick to those, otherwise, in
terms of Government policy, we feed into the realisation of those policies as
we serve the same people at the end of the day,” said the Mayor, a lawyer by
profession.
Clr Mguni praised President Mnangagwa for his open door
policy, noting that it showed his commitment to resolving problems faced in the
city.
“We started our term during one of the worst droughts after
the 1992 one. Remember we had to apply for Bulawayo to be declared a critical
water shortage area, which application was turned down after assessment of
requirements for such a declaration. However, the Government stepped in to
assist, which saw a lot of projects being undertaken in the city. The
resuscitation of boreholes in Nyamandlovu, we then saw the speedy
implementation of the Gwayi-Shangani water project which before that request
for the declaration was moving at a slow pace, now we can safely say that in
the next season, water can reach Bulawayo considering the activities happening
on the pipeline and on the dam itself.
“I remember we were invited to the State House in Bulawayo
by the President, it was the Town Clerk, Mr Christopher Dube, the late Director
of Engineering Services, Engineer Simela Dube and myself. We were there to
present the case for them to allocate us money to address our water challenges,
this was after the water contamination challenge in Luveve. To be honest the
President was forthcoming in the challenges we were facing and the Government
itself has been helpful in resolving our challenges.”
The Mayor also revealed that besides the Gwayi-Shangani Dam
and pipeline project, the Government had already committed to funding a number
of smaller projects that would assist the city in the short term.
“Indeed, there have been a lot of interventions in water
augmentation projects, a lot of promises in other projects in the south,
including Inyankuni booster and Insiza pipeline duplication where the
Government through the Ministry of Finance has made a commitment to release
funds to assist Bulawayo. It all goes to the fact that you will need to work
together, you do not need to love or hate each other, you cannot say you have
to belong to the same political party with the governing party for you to talk
and agree on something that is meant to further service delivery, in short, do
not oppose just for the sake of opposing,” he said.
With regards to their term of office at the helm of City
Hall, Clr Mguni said through working together and understanding Government
policies they managed to ensure that they were the only local authority in the
country with a full complement of senior staffers, without any suspension or
arrest.
“In terms of human capital, we scored a lot of successes,
as we speak we are the only city or municipality with a full complement of
heads of department. We do not have anyone on acting capacity, suspension or is
facing any criminal charges. For Bulawayo we have over the years managed to run
a clean government, a clean government in the sense that if you look at our
policies and resolutions, they are in terms of council policies and the laws of
the land. There is what you call a
straight-jacket approach to issues of governance in Bulawayo, so that is why
you see that every time when the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission came to
enquire on how we do things they found everything in order,” said Clr Mguni.
Regarding some of the controversial scenarios during his
term such as one relating to former Deputy Mayor, Mr Tinashe Kambarami leaving
office, Clr Mguni said in most cases councillors get into office with a wrong
mindset and do not even seek guidance on how council operates. Mr Kambarami
unsuccessfully attempted to get the city’s Town Clerk, Mr Christopher Dube
suspended from office.
“The challenge we face is when councillors come in with a
closed mind; perceived corruption, perceived malpractices on the part of
management, such that you have an outgoing crop of councillors who then advise
those incoming councillors that this is the situation, that is why you get such
occurrences as what happened to Mr Kambarami, who I think was a victim of
ill-advice and was acting on instructions from outside.
“As a Deputy Mayor, I believe one would have sought proper
advice on how to go about some of these things. In all fairness, everything has
to be procedural. If he had a good belief that a misconduct had been committed,
there are procedures to be followed. In council, officials are always there to
advise council but the problem is that most councillors do not want to be
advised by the officials.
“Emotions aside, people should work on facts, on what is
obtaining on the ground. I have already heard some aspiring councillors from my
party already starting to form opinions from what they hear outside, without
subjecting that to facts on the ground and what is happening in council,” said
Clr Mguni.
Questioned on his next move after his term expires in a few
weeks’ time, Clr Mguni said; “I am going back to my legal practice full time,
but I can always serve my country in whatever capacity that will avail itself.
I am still a member of my party, in good standing and I await further
deployments as they come.” Sunday News
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