Bindura Council Management Fails to Pitch Up for Budget Meeting

Bindura Town Council ratepayers are cross with town management and councillors who failed to pitch up for the 2024 proposed budget consultative meetings scheduled across town yesterday October 24.

The council management was supposed to meet ratepayers and stakeholders in their respective wards yesterday but in some wards, ratepayers were chased away from proposed venues as the council had not booked.

For Wards 1,2 and 3, their meeting was supposed to be held at Bindura Primary but stakeholders were turned back on arrival after being told the council had not booked space.

Captains of industry and other business operators in the central business district were supposed to meet at Hala Select Hotel but staff at the venue again said they were not booked for that meeting and turned everybody.

Those who could not turn up for the meetings physically were given Zoom links but with no one at the other end as the host and they could not attend the meetings.

The physical meetings were supposed to be facilitated by council employees and councillors.

However, the funny part of it all is that most of the councillors who were supposed to facilitate the consultations were from the opposition Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) coincidentally they are on council and parliament business stay away.

One would wonder whether the council leaders were unaware of the councillors’ strike or they deliberately proposed the dates.

Town Clerk Evelyn Madziire is currently on leave hence she had nothing to do with the meetings.

“I don’t think the council really understand the role of meeting residents and all stakeholders before a budget, they just do it as a formality but not taking stakeholders seriously,” said Bindura Business Community Trust Secretary Richard Phiri.

He said the same happened last year leading the council to impose the current budget without the mass’s involvement.