Rethinking Local Governance

By Dumisani O Nkomo

In order for any country to experience sustainable growth epitomized by sound service delivery, inclusivity and citizen participation, it is vital that a vibrant local governance foundation be in place. Importantly the local government tier of  governance in a polity has to be functional, effective, relevant and responsive. Since local government is the tier of government which is closest to the daily needs of people it is vital that this strata exists within an architecture which allows it to deliver economic and social dividends through service delivery. In the Zimbabwean context it is imperative that we begin to rethink our local governance landscape and this article proffers a few insights into how this can be achieved.

 

Service Delivery Challenges

The provision of quality, affordable, accessible and inclusive basic services is the alpha and omega of local governance. In order to trigger this adequate service provision there has to be a balanced demand and supply matrix. The demand side of local governance is the sum total of the needs,aspirations, voices, demands, rights of citizens and residents who are the primary consumers of services provided by local authorities. Local authorities whether urban or rural form the basis of the supply side of local governance. In terms of the Urban Councils Act and the Rural District Councils Act, local authorities exist to ensure that residents, villagers, house dwellers etc have adequate access to services and development. If this then is the case there is a strong argument for strong residents associations, community organizations, local business organizations having adequate space, capacity and skills to demand services and development from the suppliers of the services who are principally but not necessarily  the local authorities. I would like to argue that though local authorities especially in the form of municipalities are supposed to be the principal service providers although this is not necessarily the case because of the centralization of services such as bulk water supply and electricity.

 

Centralization

Whereas the pre-independence era was predicated by local authorities that were mandated to provide services such as electricity and water, the post-independence era or rather error in this instance occasioned the centralization of some vital services. This culminated in legislation which brought about the Zimbabwe National Water Authority [ZINWA ] , the Zimbabwe National Road Administration [ZINARA] and the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority[ZESA] .

If government is serious about devolution of power, there has to be a radical rethink about this service provision paradigm, which centralizes both power and provision of basic services whilst reducing revenue streams of local authorities. If we are to embrace the principle and practice of  devolution and decentralization of power and services as a nation, we also need to have a radical rethink about our current architecture which places local authorities on the margins of the service provision super structure of the country.

Principally, I would like to advocate for the eventual devolution of provision of energy, road construction and water delivery to local authorities. This has to be done incrementally or in an evolutionary manner because if it is fast tracked it can create new problems. Such new problems include incompetent and corrupt local councils that could possibly accentuate the service delivery crisis, which the nation is clearly facing. It would take between 5 to 10 years to adequately devolve provision of these three services to all local authorities as they are all at different levels of capacity and technical craft competence.

 

Why Local Authorities Failing To Deliver

Currently, most local authorities are failing to deliver their mandate of delivering quality services to citizens for a plethora of reasons which I will explore. Provision of services such as refuse collection remains  a challenge in major cities such as Harare and Bulawayo. Other local authorities are battling to provide  adequate sewer reticulation and a swathe of municipalities are failing to do the most basic thing that a local authority should and can do that is to keep cities and towns clean .

The reasons for this failure include but is not limited to :

1. Outright corruption
2. Incompetence
3. Lack of capacity
4. Limited revenue base
5. Central government interference- the case of local authorities being forced to acquire fire tenders from Belarus is an example.

 

There must be inbuilt mechanisms at the oversight level of sub-national governance to contain the scourge of local level corruption. It would be naïve to assume that once all power is devolved or decentralized corruption will disappear. Instead there may be, as there has been a proliferation of local level corruption. Provincial and Metropolitan Councils must be legally strengthened to exercise legislative, judicial and administrative oversight over local authorities. Provincial government or sub-national government must in turn be accountable to central government and parliament.

 

Issues that relate to lack of capacity and incompetence have to do with both the supply and demand  side of local governance. Citizens elect inept and manifestly unable, unwilling and incompetent councillors then expect miracles from those very same people. Citizens have to be more responsible on the demand side by electing individuals that are capable of delivering. Unfortunately the partisan nature of Zimbabwean politics makes this impossible. One only has to be a member of ZANU P.F or the C.C.C. to win as a councillor.

 

 

Rethinking Local Government Elections

 

Ideally, local government elections must be delinked from Presidential and Parliamentary Elections and held in totally different years. The assumption is that once this is done local governance matters will emerge as separate electoral issuess. This of course is in theory since this was the case in 1980 and 1985 when local government elections were separate from national elections. I still argue that local and national elections must be separated for the following reasons;

 

 

1.       To ensure that local government elections are issue based or based on local priorities. Usually they are immersed in toxic politics of either Zanu must go or ZANU must stay and not on issues that affect people on a day to day basis.

2.       It will be easier to hold parties and individuals to account.

3.         Independent candidates will stand a higher chance of winning.

 

 

Traditionally independents have been the best candidates due to their lack of affinity for partisan interests. However most have lost heavily due to our electoral system which  deifies political parties before whom all should bow and confess that they rule.

 

A big question for all of us as we head for the next elections in 2023, is what issues are at stake in the different localities next year?  Ideally the issue of controversial parking systems, failure to provide basic services should be local government issues in cities like Harare and Bulawayo. In other areas the issues could be different but candidates that contest in elections must be able to participate in town hall debates and meetings where they outline their policies and ideas. Local government elections must be about the best ideas, the best leaders and the best policies and local government elections must be a contest of ideas. This is not to say national elections must be otherwise but this is easier to achieve at local level.

 

Broadening of Revenue Streams

 

Lastly I would like to argue that  local authorities are unable to deliver services because they have dwindling and limited revenue streams . A failing national economy has eroded  ratepayers abilities to pay for rates and services. Local authorities have very limited central government support. This is due to diminished incomes which has resulted in rate payers being unable to pay for rates and services. This is also caused by central government starving local government of revenue streams from vehicle licencing [ which used to be localized ], for example. This is also exacerbated by local authorities[1]  inability to think outside the box to broaden their revenue bases in order to provide quality services. Without  broad revenue bases local authorities will be unable to deliver basic services.

 

In conclusion Local governance should be given the requisite attention that it deserves in Zimbabwe in order to improve the lives of citizens in various local authorities. The devolution concept has to be delinked from political party contestation for it to carry its relevant meaning. Political party grandstanding has killed local community initiatives and should come to an end in Zimbabwe if local authorities are to effectively run their programs in their quest to deliver the basic services to their residents.

 

Dumisani O Nkomo is a writer and author of the Book No Holds Barred. He can be contacted on this email address. Dumisani.nkomo @gmail.com

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ReThinking and Reimagining Zimbabwe

By Dumisani O Nkomo

Zimbabwe has languished for far too long in a morass of economic quagmire and the time has come for the country to extricate itself from the indignities of mass poverty. Importantly, it is critical for us as a nation to rethink our governance and economic models, so that the country becomes a globally competitive entity with quality standard of living for its citizens; sustainable economic growth and solid service delivery. In this instalment I will proffer a few ideas on how the country can place itself on a pedestal of sustainable economic growth, development and social transformation.

Global Competitive Index

A good starting point is for the country to be in tandem with global growth indicators such as the World Economic Forum ‘s Global Competitiveness Index, which measures a country’s economic growth and development, using a number of indicators including infrastructure, institutions, macro-economic health, technological readiness, ease of doing business, government efficiency, service delivery, amongst other indices. Specifically, the World Economic Forum Defines global competitiveness as the ability of a country to achieve sustained high rates of growth in Gross Domestic Product [G.D.P] per capita. Using this as a yardstick, it is thus important for us as a nation to take stock of where we are, and then re-imagine or rethink how we can place the country on a trajectory of sustainable growth and transformation; which in turn will improve the standard of living for citizens. Standard of living can be termed as the material well-being of people and it can be measured by factors such as income, access to goods and services including health, education etc. It is the dream of every Zimbabwean to have a decent quality standard of living and in any electoral contest the contestation should be about the political entity or set of individuals who /which is/ are best able to deliver quality standard of living for the citizens through clearly articulated programs of actions, strategies, policies, or in the electoral case well thought out manifestoes.

Governance / Leadership

At the epicentre of a country’s ability to turn its fortunes around is the critical issue of governance and leadership. Leadership expert John Maxwell aptly sums this thinking through his dictum; everything rises and falls on leadership. Critically, our definition of leadership should not be limited to political leadership, but the entirety of leadership in the corporate sector, civil society, arts, academia, sport, civic and community arenas. Leadership across different sectors requires cross cutting qualities of servanthood, adaptability, envisioning, integrity and enterprise. Leadership is the software that creates a template for sustainable societal transformation, community development and economic growth and this is the foundation that the nation should build in order for meaningful and incremental socio-economic development to take place. A meritocratic leadership model should be central to nation building. Meritocracy refers to government by merit, and merit is not limited to academic qualifications and performance, but craft competence in a given field or given fields, a track record of achievement and demonstrable potential, enterprise and talent. Having said this, I would like to  say that elections have become a meaningless political ritual where political parties routinely recycle their cadres, largely pre-occupied by desperate collective desires to occupy political office at any cost through any means possible and chiefly through two main political antagonists, ZANU P.F and CCC. It’s about time elections became a contest of ideas not a glorified personality pageant. In the aftermath of the ignominious exit of Conservative Party Leader Boris Johnson from office no less than 11 contenders have emerged from his party for the post. Interestingly, the issue which appears central to all of them is the issue of taxation. This is an internal contest and it is already clear what issues are at stake. For Zimbabwe what issues are at stake in the 2023 elections and what do the different political parties stand for ideologically or ideawise? What policy propositions does the ruling party have to extricate the country from this economic quagmire? What alternative policies and leadership do opposing parties have? What policy propositions do contestants for municipal and house of assembly have? What policy propositions do presidential aspirants for the 2023 elections have or it’s an issue of personalities, emotions, history and factional interests?

Local Governance Leadership and Architecture

Local governance must be saved from the jaws of partisan politics. Ideally, political party electoral politics must be done away with at local authority level and replaced by a meritorious candidate; with a track record of community service or those who can pitch feasible ideas capable of transforming local government and service delivery. The rot has crept in at the local level with political opportunists sneaking in through political back doors using the popularity of the country’s parties ZANU P.F and CCC. Local government is the basis of a thriving democracy and sound service delivery because it is that level of governance which is closer to the people and is engaged with daily issues that affect people. It only stands to reason that quality Councillors are needed to debate and enact policies and strategies for the collective well-being of municipalities. Important financial decisions that affect the collective well-being of citizens are made at this level, but the country has left this critical aspect of governance to chance, giving room to corruption and inept governance across the political divide. The country needs a new political culture and architecture which recognizes and promotes an efficient, devolved governance. The idea of devolution enshrined in section 272 of constitution is instead elusive if we do not have the right kind of leaders and managers at local level. The devolution economic dividend can only be delivered through able leadership at micro level.

Policies and Institutions

In order to deliver quality standard of living for citizens, a country needs policies which address the imperatives of a growing sustainable economy. Stability and growth in themselves have an indelible link with coherent policy formulation and implementation. Policy instability through random and regular enactment of statutory instruments can undermine business and investor confidence. It is thus essential for the executive arm of government to ensure that policy pronouncements are consistent with broader economic strategy growth imperatives and are not diametrically opposite to the global goals of sustainable growth to deliver quality standard of living for citizens .For example, in May 2022 the government in a bid to arrest currency slide and inflation banned banks from issuing loans in a move which was clearly addressing the symptoms of a deeper macroeconomic issue . Thankfully the ban was later on reversed but such policy incoherence and unpredictability has a negative impact on markets, currency stability, investor confidence and business growth.

There is need to respect the independence of the diverse arms of government and institutions which exist to protect the public interests. The Reserve Bank is one such institution whose independence should not be undermined but it should not however become law to itself as was the case in the 2006 -2007. The independence of the legislature and the judiciary are critical as we mould a stable, democratic, people -centred model of governance which delivers a quality standard of living to citizens. These independent arms of government ensure that there are adequate checks and balances for the general good. Importantly the Chapter 12 institutions i.e. Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission, Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, Zimbabwe Gender Commission and the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission are institutions which need to be strengthened by ensuring that they are adequately resourced and accountable to parliament.

Strong, independent institutions will provide a stable governance apparatus which is foundational to building business and investor confidence. There is a link between institutions and Global Competitiveness, the respect for independent commissions guarantees such a dispensation.

A sound political / governance architecture epitomized by sound legal frameworks, pragmatic policymaking, robust implementation and a culture of strong independent institutions is essential in building the foundations of a transformational state.

This is just the first of an instalment of four other articles which will explore how we can reimagine and rebuild Zimbabwe. In the other articles I will look at the economy, service delivery, a green economy and technology.

 

Dumisani O Nkomo is a writer and author of the book No Holds Barred.

 

 

Bulawayo Water Issue - A Crisis of Governance and Leadership

 

Bulawayo Water Crisis – A Crisis of Leadership and Water Governance

Dumisani O Nkomo

The water crisis in Bulawayo epitomized by water rationing , cutting of  water supplies and  challenges of quality of water in places such as Luveve culminating in a number of deaths is not a new phenomenon. I would like to argue that the Bulawayo water crisis is not just a crisis of lack of water but more importantly a crisis of leadership and a governance deficit at local and national level. The shortage of water has bedevilled the city since it established in the 19 th century and the fact that Bulawayo is situated in natural region 4 means  availability of water will always be a challenge  as rainfall is scarce and erratic in this region . Absence of regular rains is never an accident but rather more of  a permanent condition demanding permanent solutions .

History and Background

Bulawayo’s water problems date back to when the British South Africa Company had jurisdiction over the country and indeed Bulawayo. Whether that jurisdiction was obtained legally or not morally or not   is not the subject or object of this article. In 1898 the British South Africa Company granted the Bulawayo Waterworks Company the authority to supply the town of Bulawayo with water and electricity on  a commercial basis . The ability of the water works company to meet the water needs of the growing town was severely constrained even after the company constructed Hillside Dams in 1898. Residents of Bulawayo regularly complained about the water works company’s inability to supply clean and regular city for the then town . The Hillside Dams was up to then the only supply dam for the city and in 1924 after a protracted legal battle the Dams were handed over to the Bulawayo Town council after a sum of 117 ,000pounds was paid to the Waterworks Company. The history of different entities being in charge of water supply for the city is therefore not new. To their credit colonial administrations built a number of other dams namely:

1928 – Kham Dam

1943 – Lower Ncema

1956 – Umzingwane is

1973- Upper Ncema

1973- Mayfair Dam [ Now Insiza Dam]

Shockingly colonial administrations  built more supply dams for the city of Bulawayo than our own “post independent administration which only built Mtshabezi Dam in the 1990 ‘s [ the dam’s pipe was only connected to the city in 2013.

We can thus infer that there was proper planning and allocation of resources in the pre independence era for whatever reasons. The five supply dams which were built prior to independence were also built by the local authority i.e the Bulawayo City Council. We can draw various conclusions from this but it is clear from this that the advent of centralization and monopolization of bulk water supply by the government of Zimbabwe has occasioned paucity of new supply dams and sources for the city of Bulawayo. There were however pre-existing conditions which enabled the council to have both the will and capacity to build supply dams almost every fifteen years whilst the ZINWA has built one new supply dam for the city in 40 years. Such factors may include the vibrancy of the national economy and broad local authority revenue base etc.

The Problem

The Bulawayo water crisis is by nature multi-faceted and multi-dimensional but can be attributable to the following:

1.       Centralization of bulk water supply

2.       Poor policy/ legislative frame framework linked to the point above

3.       Lack of political will from government

4.       Misplaced priorities in budgetary allocations

5.       Failure by local authority to provide leadership in distribution / billing of water

6.       Failure to develop an inclusive water governance framework at national and local level which involves citizens and relevant stakeholders. This is not withstanding that the ZINWA Act envisages the creation of local catchment councils.

Let me briefly try and populate these assumptions which I  argue are at the centre of our water conundrum and quagmire that we find the city of Bulawayo immersed in.

Centralization

Centralization of bulk water supply through the ZINWA Act was more of a poorly thought out political strategy of social and political control rather than a prudent policy to deliver services. The fact that government through its water flagship built one dam[Mtshabezi ] over 40 years and the Bulawayo City Council built 5 dams is abundant testimony of this.

It can be argued that devolving of provision of water sources may cause administrative inefficiencies but there is little empirical evidence to sustain this argument.

The fundamental assumption though in local authorities being given the mandate to take over bulk water supply is that town councils, city councils and rural district councils have the requisite capacity to deliver on this mandate. It is argued that this was possible previously because of the broad revenue base which for example the Bulawayo City Council had and a more conducive economic environment. I still argue that centralization especially of bulk water supply has been one of the most monumental policy failures of government which has contributed to the current water crisis. Centralization epitomizes water governance failure by the government of Zimbabwe and exposes policy contradiction given  the government’s posturing on Devolution through its  “Devolution and Decentralization Policy” and importantly chapter  section 264 of The Constitution.

2. There is need to revisit the ZINWA Act and the Water Act to give expression to a policy framework which prioritizes an inclusive policy and regulatory framework within a devolved apparatus of local governance and service delivery.

3.The government of Zimbabwe has spectacularly let down Bulawayo by persistently and consistently failing to allocate adequate resources to address the cities long term water needs.

The Gwayi - Shangani dam which is expected to be the country’s third largest inland dam after Tokwe Mukosi and Mutirikwi is still incomplete even though a cabinet implementation matrix had envisaged that the dam would be completed at the end of 2018. The government now says the dam will be completed in 2022. Whilst the corona virus pandemic is a reasonable reason for this. The government’s  tendency  of shifting goalposts in issues of water for Bulawayo has eroded public confidence in any pronouncement or announcement they make about delivery of long term solutions  for the city .Who can forget the announcement by the authorities that U.S 864 million had been secured for the Zambezi Water Project in 2012 from the Export – Import Bank of China .The Gwayi – Shangani Dam and Pipeline to Bulawayo were expected to be complete by 2018 according to Government reports then .

 

 

 

Misplaced Priorities and Marginalization

The founder of the Matabeleland Zambezi water project the late Dr Dumiso Dabengwa and the late great economist Dr Eric Bloch had argued that the Zambezi Water Project could be funded with little donor or government funding. The Zambezi water Project Trust sought to solicit a mining concession from  the government to fund the water project. To cut a long story short the Trust was not granted that concession and funding for the project was sabotaged systematically.

Local Authority

The Bulawayo City Council has historically excelled in managing scarce water resources through a cocktail of measures premised on long term planning, stewardship and a reasonable billing regime. Lately the council seems to be struggling in this regard and when the Luveve water crisis which claimed the lives of a number of people broke out the council regrettably did not provide leadership by at least apologizing or taking responsibility. This was a very poor demonstration of leadership. Leadership is premised on the fundamentals of vision, planning, acceptance of responsibility, servanthood and ability to community vision or challenges in a non-patronizing manner.

The residents of Bulawayo are aware that the council is hamstrung by shortage of foreign currency and is wallowing in a financial quagmire accentuated by struggling residents who are failing to pay bills. What is required is for the council to step up and provide leadership on the water issue and not be troglodytes that back off from responsibility. Council must clearly articulate the importance of water for the development of the city and paint a picture of the Bulawayo that they and the residents are co creating. A clearly defined and communicated vision will inspire residents to realise that paying bills is part of the bigger picture of a better Bulawayo. The council needs to move away from a seemingly morose, taciturn and punitive manner of always placing residents at the centre of the failure to deliver services due to failure to pay bills  . The interaction of the council with ratepayers must not begin and end with cutting of water to residents or letters of demand and slashing of maize but should move to that of partnership, co creation and co ownership which requires shared responsibilities, rights and obligations by all  .

Having said this there needs to be leadership at national and local level in terms of the water crisis in Bulawayo. Bulawayo is the country’s gate way to South Africa, Botswana and Zambia and without water the city will bleed to death. This will signify a death knell not just for the Matabeleland region but indeed the whole country for a city which is key as a transport hub for the country in the SADC Region

Fundamental changes to the policy and regulatory framework need to be made to devolve provision of bulk water supply. This must be done is a systematic and structured manner not in the usual fast track manner as this could create new problems of lack of capacity and lack of financing by local authorities. This process must be well planned, phased, systematic and structured providing a roadmap for overhaul of the ZINWA ACT, the Water Act, the Urban Councils Act and related acts . There also must be a sound framework for Private / Public Partnerships which will facilitate investment in water infrastructure development. through Build Own operate [ B.O.T.], Build Own Operate Transfer [ Boot] and Build Own Operate models [ B.O.O.]. This will assist in injecting private capital into water projects and infrastructure. The policy framework must ensure that water is still accessible and affordable to citizens.

A water financing strategy must be developed at municipal in anticipation of a devolved water distribution dispensation which gives councils the mandate to provide bulk water through building dams and sourcing water from aquifers. This will require a well thought out Local Economic Development [L.E.D ] blueprint for Bulawayo which unlocks multiple revenue streams for the city beyond bills paid by residents.

Bulawayo Will Not Die!

Masiyephambili

 

 

Dumisani O Nkomo is the Chief Executive Officer of Habakkuk Trust

He is also a published author. He writes here in his personal capacity

Salvaging The City of Kings

Bulawayo Blues – Salvaging The City of Kings – By Dumisani O Nkomo

Bulawayo has for decades been a leader in local governance and service delivery excellence. This reputation has been gradually eroded over the past 10 or so years and in particular the past three years   .Significantly the death of at least 13 residents due to typhoid has severely compromised the stature and status of the City of Kings Once known for cleanliness  and order the city has catastrophically and spectacularly descended into the  quagmire of poor service delivery  .The water crisis which appears to be at the epicentre of the current crisis in “Blues ‘is largely a creation of central government which is statutorily required to provide bulk water for cities and towns .I would like to argue that the crisis Bulawayo faces is a crisis of leadership and governance which requires urgent , decisive and proactive action .Solutions need to soberly  through  reaction to the service delivery quagmire and leadership conundrum facing the city .The crisis in Bulawayo is a manifestation of a deeper leadership crisis at local and national level .The multiplicity of challenges facing the city of Bulawayo require the right leadership mix in craft competencies in order to navigate the city towards sustainable growth , development and sound service delivery .

Context

In order to effectively deal with the Bulawayo leadership and service delivery conundrum it is essential to have an appreciation of contextual issues at macro and micro level . This understanding not only explains failures of the current council due to extrinsic or exogenic factors but also the type of leadership which is required to deal with the complex issues affecting the city .

It is generally accepted that the economic landscape and political architecture of Zimbabwe has destroyed local government capabilities .The state of the economy has made it prohibitively difficult for local authorities to deliver their core mandates of service delivery as well as sound local governance epitomized by responsive local government structures and processes .This is not rocket science and we expect those who contested to be councillors to be fully aware of this .It is a fact and an uncontested  one that government centralized provision of bulk water through the Zimbabwe National Water Authority ZINWA  has only managed to build one dam i.e Mtshabezi Dam in the early 90”’s to mitigate the cities growing water problems .It is also  a fact that the state of the economy has had crippling and debilitating effects on quality of and access to service delivery .

Local authorities are also hamstrung by a disabling legislative framework which grants sweeping powers to the Minister of Local Government and central government .

 Local government elections have become short cuts for many opportunists and political scavengers to hungrily descend on municipalities in search for tenders , stands and freebies . The  professional , competent servant and service culture of the city has been eroded in the process  .In this I lay responsibility not just on the elected politicians but also on the  executive arm or management arm  of the city which is seized with operational issues  . The city of Bulawayo  needs sound , visionary leadership anchored on integrity from the councillors and an equally dynamic , craft competent management free from avarice , caprice and the trappings of arrogance .I would like to propose a number of ideas in order to improve the state of the city and broadly local governance and service delivery in the city .It and.

In order to transition to stability and thereafter a sustainable path of development the city needs  councillors and technocrats who understand the intricacies of local governance its relationship with  complex economic and political ecosystems 

 

1.Vison 2050 For The City

The City of Bulawayo inclusive of various stakeholders needs to develop a 30-year visionary framework from the city. This of course may be contained in current masterplans but I am referring to a more inclusive process of drawing up a vision of the Bulawayo we want in 30 years’ time in terms of the Local Economic Development [ L.E.D]  , town planning , renewable energy , water and sewer reticulation , recreation /park spaces , technology and so on . This vision of the Bulawayo we want must then inspire us to take the necessary policy and planning steps in five-year strategic planning cycles to achieve this broader vision. This vision will also inform the kind of leaders that are needed in order to achieve the 2050 Bulawayo vision. We will thus be driven not by political parties but by vision and the desire to achieve vision through deployment of competent leadership to govern and manage the city.

Bulawayo 2050 should make Bulawayo one of the fastest growing cities in Sub Saharan Africa within that 30 year period. For that to happen craft competence is required at the technocratic strata of the municipality in order to effect planning and implementation and craft literate councillors to provide vision, direction and oversight.

2.Meritocratic Leadership

Mob rule where the biggest thugs in political parties emerge victorious in primary elections at the expense of quality candidates must be replaced by a meritocratic system which provides for minimum thresholds for one to be a councillor .This referrers not to academic qualifications but rather to whether one has a proven track record in leadership , management or community service at any level .Property ownership could be another qualification but it must not be the sole determinant because many young Zimbabweans with potential have lost their ability to acquire property due to the collapse of the economy  . It is however still an important consideration. All those intending to contest must declare their assets in order to curb issues of conflict of interest and gravitation towards kleptomania. This however assumes that the electorate would be mature and be able to elect quality councillors. The assumption itself is predicated on an informed and active citizenry and this in turn assumes that there are institutions or processes which produce such a citizen.

The electorate has to be educated and informed about the importance of local governance   thus the imperative of having quality councillors. Civil society and the media have a key role in this respect and this civic education must not happen in 2023 when political temperatures are at their highest and reason is at its lowest. Citizens must be educated about the role of councillors , the role of local authorities and indeed how they[ we ] as residents can engage with municipalities as active citizens .The media also has a key role in ensuring that it becomes a marketplace of ideas so that we do not have “people accidentally chosen from the ranks of the unemployed “presiding over key governance and financial stewardship issues .The governance and wellbeing of the city should be so important that those who are best able to advance and defend the interests of the city are elected . Such people are there in the corporate sector, creatives, academia , labour , civil society ,community leadership structures , churches and in the swathe of professions the city has at its disposal .

Periodic Review of Performance of Public Officials

A system of public periodic reviews of key officials in council management such as Town Clerks , Chamber secretaries and heads of department must be put in place and the process must be open to public scrutiny .This is because local authorities largely depend on the technical competence of its management / technical arm and when this arm is compromised the legislative or political arm is weakened .

Urban and rural councils legislation must have a recall clause so that non performing councillors can be recalled not by their political parties but by residents. This will no doubt keep councillors on their toes  .

The Bulawayo City Council specifically has to revisit and re-engineer its previous capacity of harnessing revenue from alternative financial streams. In the eighties the council mobilized significant resources for the construction of schools and clinics from the proceeds of beer sales. This may not be tenable under the current economic regime but efforts must be made to maximize revenue harnessing from alternative streams such as council properties, Private Public Partnerships and other local economic development initiatives.

The Bulawayo City Council must develop a robust Local Economic Development Plan which elicits the economic potential of the city based on its competitive advantages namely

1.Location – it is ideal as a gateway to southern Africa

2.Cultural and artistic capital – the city is the artistic and cultural capital of the country

3.Tourism – the city is situated strategically near major tourist attractions such as the Victoria Falls , Rhodes Matopos National Park , Hwange Game reserve and the untamed beauty of Binga as well as one of the best natural history museums in the continent

4.Warehousing – the location of the city makes it ideal for tertiary industries such as warehousing which can exploit the many empty factories which the city has which may never be resurrected because of global competitiveness factors. The empty factories can be used for warehousing for goods on transit and aquaculture

5.Transport and technology

Obviously some of these are dependent on upstream enabling factors such as a functional economy, devolution enabling legislation , good governance at national level amongst other factors .

Bulawayo must and can be saved. It all starts with electing capable leaders, having a vibrant management, a responsive and responsible citizenry undergirded by  a long term vision for the city .

Let’s make Bulawayo 2050 happen. Bulawayo vision 2050 makes it impossible for chancers and opportunists to be councillors because the task of implementing this vision will require people with skills and competencies which deliver the vision . Bulawayo shall not die , Bulawayo must be and will be saved .The first steps begin with you and me as ordinary residents :

1.Elect quality leaders

2.Hold leaders to account

3.Pay rates

4. Maintain cleanliness and eliminate litter pollution

5.Plant a tree

6.Petition political parties to recall non performing councillors

7.Share our dream of Bulawayo 2050

Mayibuye !

Dumisani O Nkomo

Dumisani O Nkomo is a writer and opinion leader . He is the Chief Executive Officer of Habakkuk Trust

He writes here in his personal capacity

 

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Covid 19 - A Zimbabwean Perspective of the Zimbabwean Response

Zimbabwe Covid 19  - Responses and Challenges

By Dumisani O  . Nkomo

Since the World Health Organization declared that Covid -19 was a global health emergency Zimbabwe has since officially reported at least 7 cases and one fatality. The Zimbabwean government  then responded by putting in place a raft of measures to deal with the pandemic. I would like to suggest that over and beyond the Coronavirus pandemic threat ,there is need for a more comprehensive outlook to pandemics and other public health emergencies or disasters .I will attempt to first of all outline what the government and none state actors have done, then highlight critical gaps which include provision of service delivery , institutional capacity , a competent public health system , enabling laws and policies  which are critical in dealing with pandemics such as Covid -1

Although the government appeared relaxed and undecided in its initial response it eventually did eventually  respond to the Covid -19 pandemic  with a number of measures .Already in existence in terms of response to disasters is the Civil Protection Act which forms a critical component of Zimbabwe’s disaster  response mechanisms and legislative infrastructure  . In addition to this the government of Zimbabwe  through the Ministry of Health crafted the Zimbabwe  Preparedness and Response Plan which outlined how government , line ministries and key institutions would respond to the COVID 19 Pandemic . Further to this the government of Zimbabwe speedily formulated a swathe of Statutory Instruments as is the norm to respond to the increasing threat of the pandemic in the face of accusations of inaction, inertia and indecisiveness  from the public through civil society groupings and media . These public health measures in response  included the following which were cited as Covid 19 –Prevention ,Containment and Treatment Measures :

1.Staturory Instrument 77 of 2020

2.Statutory Instrument 82 of 2020

3. Statutory Instrument 83 of 2020 [ National Lockdown Order ]

Further to this the government also crafted measures for frontline workers involved in fight against COVID 19 in the form of the Personal Protective Equipment Policy  Covid 19 .

All these raft of measures are indeed applaudible and indicative of  the government’s desire to deal with the pandemic albeit belatedly 

The pandemic has however brought a number of  longstanding structural issues to the fore which erode or undermine the government’s ability , capacity and indeed the capability of the country to deal with any major pandemic or any other public health emergency or national disaster .

 Service Delivery

Service delivery is key in ensuring the prevention , management and eradication of pandemics .Zimbabwe has a debilitating incapacity to deliver services whether through central government or local authorities or indeed through statutory service providers such as the Zimbabwe Electricity Supply Authority .

Provision of clean water is and has been a challenge in most parts of Zimbabwe manifesting itself in the current context of the Coronavirus threat  . Whilst government has been  pontificating about the imperative of washing hands with soap in order to prevent the spread of Corona virus many towns including Bulawayo and parts of Harare where experiencing serious water shortages. Places such as Maphisa  ,Matabeleland South have been experiencing water shortages for a while .The non-availability of clean water is itself a health disaster and emergency that must be attended to as a matter of the first capital magnitude .Whilst the Bulawayo City Council has said the shortage of water is due to ongoing rehabilitation of waterworks  ,the city of Bulawayo has been facing a water crisis for over 25 years with government doing little if anything to address this water crisis . Surely after 25 years an issue does not qualify to be a crisis but becomes a condition. The capital city Harare has also had its fair share of water shortages which may be attributed to poor water governance and corruption as most of the Cities supply dams are full .

The shortage of water makes the country vulnerable to various public health disasters such  as the Cholera epidemic that affected Harare and other parts of the country .Water shedding has resulted in people in high density areas having to queue for   water thus making them vulnerable to contracting coronavirus because social distancing is not adhered to in queues which are matters of survival .

Erratic electricity supply and load shedding erode the country’s capacity to cope with the Coronavirus as one of the suggested coping mechanisms has been working remotely or working from home . This is impossible in a situation where there is no electricity and no wi fi connectivity . Effective sewer reticulation and waste management are also key service delivery pillars which if unattended could lead to other public health emergencies

Social Security and Social Safety Nets

Over 80% of the populace is employed by the informal sector and up to 90 %dependant on the informal sector for goods and services . Zimbabwe also has a large population  of widows , orphans and vulnerable children  as well as retrenches and pensioners .Zimbabwe  still has very poor safety nets to protect the most vulnerable members of society . Though government has announced measures for cash transfers for the poor this is hardly enough for the poor who need a more robust social safety nets  . One can Imagine what happens to a poor family during 21 days of lockdown in terms of access to food and basic commodities.

The poor cannot afford to stock food for 21 days [ the duration of the lockdown ]and indeed the average Zimbabwean civil servant can also be classified as poor and incapable of stocking food over 21 days or surviving 21 days of lack of alternative economic activity.

In the long term the country need a strong social security system that protects pensioners , youths and children from the effects of shutdowns , lockdowns or any major pandemic or disaster .

Currently the fiscus is unable to provide the kind of support that economies such as the United States are providing not only for the poor but for distressed industries . The U.S Government recently announced a 2 trillion dollar package to fight against the coronavirus . This is equivalent to a combined total of 200 years worth of Zimbabwe national budgets .

Food

The shortage of basic commodities such as mealie meal have accentuated a.. tnd accelerated the problem of long queues which are fertile ground for the spread of the Coronavirus . Faced with the possibility of hunger Zimbabweans have been forced to join long queues in order to secure food especially mealie meal . The availability and provision of food is essential in lockdown contexts as failure to ensure availability of affordable basic commodities can militate against measures to contain the pandemic and indeed other public health emergencies  and or national disasters .

Strong Institutions

The existence of strong institutions is key in fighting and managing any national disaster or crisis such as Covid 19 .Such institutions include  government departments , security forces , local authorities , the media and non state actors . Our institutions a s a country still need a lot of capacity as even in the absence of such pandemics and emergencies most government departments operate at deficient levels .The Civil Protection  Unit is one such institution which needs to be strengthened . It cannot however be strong if the structures and departments that feed into it are inherently incapacitated .

Sound Public Health System

A sound public health system is a prerequisite to an effective response to bio medical emergencies such as Covic 19 . A sound public health system I must include well equipped public health systems , well remunerated healthcare workers and     responsive  systems .The country’s health care systems problems are well documented and are a subject of other articles  . There is an urgent need to overhaul the country’s public health system which would require sustained budgetary budget support from the fiscus as well as multi lateral institutions.

Information Dissemination Infrastructure

Although the government recently announced measures to liberalize the media by granting licences for community radio ,this has been generally too little too late . By this time the country should be having at three community radio stations in each province . Community radio is key in the fight against pandemics such as Covod 19 .The governments obsession with controlling the airwaves has cost the country in terms of responsiveness to the coronavirus as information would have speedily been disseminated to affected remote communities .

Pro Active Policy / Legal Framework

Instead of relying on the promulgation of statutory instruments there is need for beefing up of the Civil Protection Act and formulation of a new omnibus law to deal with public health emergencies and natural disasters. The country needs an aggressive enabling policy framework so that future responses build on a strong policy infrastructure and legislative superstructure

Leadership

The question of leadership an governance is key in the ability of any country to respond to disasters. This is why Winston Churchill made a great wartime leader as he was able to rally the whole nation to fight against Nazi Hittler .Decisive and effective leadership is key in the fight against this global pandemic . The world is crying for caring , servant leaders who provide vision , hope and direction in times like these . As Zimbabwe we need such leadership at national and local level because crises tend to expose leadership deficiencies and capacities

Together we can fight and win against Covid 19 .This requires leaders from different political parties , religious , civic and business leaders to lend a hand and a voice is this great battle

Mayibuye

Dumisani O Nkomo is the Chief Executive Officer of Habakkuk Trust , he is also an author , opinion leader and content producer

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