Full Text: Speech By Incoming Harare Mayor Herbert Gomba At The Swearing In Of Councillers

SPEECH BY THE INCOMING MAYOR, CLLR HERBERT GOMBA ON THE SWEARING IN OF THE COUNCILLORS FOR HARARE CITY COUNCIL ON MONDAY, 3RD SEPTEMBER 2018

Salutations:
The Provincial Administrator, Mrs Caroline Kampila
Honourable Zwizwai and Honourable Hwende representing our President Advocate Nelson Chamisa
Honourable Members of Parliament
My fellow Councillors
The Deputy Mayor
Harare City Council management and staff, led by Eng Chisango
Party Members here present
Representatives of the various Residents Associations
Members of the media fraternity
Ladies and Gentlemen

First of all, let me thank my fellow Councillors for the nomination and subsequent election to the post of Mayor of Harare. On behalf of my fellow Councillors, I say thank you, the people of Harare, I say thank you for voting for us during the just ended harmonised elections. I humbly accept that responsibility with the intention of being a servant and listening mayor.

Allow me to itemise problems being faced by the City of Harare. These are water shortages, roads in need of resealing/ reconstructions, debts ballooning due to unemployment, mushika-shika, congestion, uncontrolled vending, illegal occupation of Council land, lack of financial support from Central Government. Just to mention a few.

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Transformation Agenda
Our transformation agenda will be hinged on the need to increase revenue and contain costs. It’s high time we engage various private players in meeting the various needs of our residents. This is through Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) on waste-to-energy
project, sewer system rehabilitation and road rehabilitation.
Our transformation agenda will also be anchored on the need to review the Harare Combination Master Plan and the Strategic Plan document and work towards attaining the 2025 goal. This will be done collectively, working together with all relevant stakeholders.
The current review of the Harare Combination Master Plan should take into consideration the need to decongest the City and prepare a roadmap for the future construction of ring and spaghetti roads or overhead highways. Due to the economy, we may not be able to construct them, however, in our time, we simply want to set the agenda for future implementation.

I implore on Government to pay through the National Budget, the 5% Constitutional allocation to local authorities. Councils should be allowed the latitude to reconnect with the outside world through exchanges, visits and bilateral relations. This can only be achieved if we are allowed to travel for the purposes of engagement and mobilisation of financial support and resources. Government has emphasised re-engagement but we feel at our level we should be allowed full room to engage and source partnerships with the international community. We are the arm of Government closest to the people. I also call upon all Council workers to recommit themselves to the Transformation
Agenda so that we realise the intended benefits.

Finally, I want to conclude by quoting Isaiah 40 verse 31 which says, Those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they will soar high on wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary. And as we are faced with the difficult task of turning around the City, I too ask that the Lord renews our strength so that we won’t be weary and we shall prevail.

Thank you