Analysts have questioned the prudence of the trip when
councils in Zimbabwe are so broke that they are failing to deliver basic
services including provision of water, maintaining roads and to pay workers’
salaries. Analysts described the trip as just another gravy train by council
officials.
“Public entity managers in Zimbabwe lack the necessary
frugality to run the economy,” said one economist who declined to be named.
Gabriel Masvora, the Director of Communications in the
Ministry of Local Government and Public Works confirmed the trip and said that
those local authorities sanctioned to undertake the trip proved to Government
that they can afford the trip.
Conspicuous by their absence on the list are Harare, Gweru
and Mutare City Councils. The workshop will take place on August 27 and 28,
2024.
Masvora said for Harare, it was noted that there are
several commissions investigating cases of corruption and it was therefore not
prudent for that municipality to send a delegate.
BRICKS is an economic block founded in 2009 by Brazil,
Russia, India, China and South Africa hence the acronym BRICS. Zimbabwe applied
to be a BRICS member and the application is yet to be approved.
Egypt, Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia, Iran and the United Arab
Emirates (UAE) joined the bloc this year. The bloc is advocating doing business
in local currency and dumping the US$.
The memo addressed to Acting Provincial Directors for Local
Government Services by the Permanent Secretary John Basera for the same
Ministry says that councils will foot the travel and subsistence bills.
“Critical to note is that Local Authorities are required to
meet all the Travel and Subsistence costs related to the trip,” reads part of
the communique.
The Mirror is reliably informed that one of the biggest
expenses for local authorities are workshop allowances for staffers and
councillors which run into thousands of dollars per day per person. A source
told The Mirror that local authorities are milked by staffers through workshops
adding that those going to Russia are not going to pocket less than US$6 000
per delegate for small councils and US$10 000 for big ones.
The memo states that the agenda of the workshop resonates
with what is prescribed in the Call to Action – No Compromise to Service
Delivery blue print launched by President Emmerson Mnangagwa in November last
year.
“An international municipalities BRICS forum will be held
from 27 – 28 August at the EXPOCENTER in Moscow, Russia. The forum focuses on
promotion of modern approaches and technologies in urban management,
improvement of municipal infrastructure, sustainability of cities, more
effective resource management and many other aspects related to the operations
of Local Authorities. “In this regard, you are required to inform the following
Local Authorities about the event which they should attend. The relevant procedures
of allowing Council officials to travel to Russia should be conducted to enable
the Ministry to process the Cabinet Authority for the delegation,” reads part
of the communique. Masvingo Mirror
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