MDC president Nelson Chamisa has defended urban councils over their failure to deliver basic services to residents, blaming the central government instead.
Urban councils, of which almost all of them are dominated by the MDC, have increasingly come under fire from residents for failing to provide water, refuse collection and proper sewer reticulation.
Chamisa said that the central government is failing to provide councils with foreign currency needed to buy water for treatment chemicals, making it difficult for them to fulfil their mandate. Said Chamisa:
All councils are struggling because of the state of the central government. The river cannot flow when there are no rains.
You can’t expect councils to provide adequate clean water when the central government is failing to provide foreign currency for water treatment chemicals when people have no jobs and can’t pay for service delivery.
It is, therefore, important for the MDC to lead the central government and restore dignity to the worker and the image of the country.
Chamisa castigated the government for from stealing from the poor to pay the rich. He said the introduction of bond notes and the 2% tax is a mechanism to steal from the poor.