Bulawayo residents have expressed anger over Bulawayo City Council’s (BCC) plans to parcel out a large commercial stand to Town Clerk, Christopher Dube.
The land allocation to Dube is part of his proposed conditions of service though he already has another stand adjacent to the one he has been offered.
In a letter to Town Lands and Planning Committee chair, Councillor Pilate Moyo on Friday, the Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association (BPRA) queried why council officials were being given land when more 100 000 residents remain on the housing waiting list. BPRA coordinator, Emmanuel Ndlovu wrote:
We are in possession of minutes of the Bulawayo City Council (BCC) held August 5, 2020. According to the minutes, this stand is adjacent to another piece of land (Stand No.14662) that Dube already owns after he was offered it for his initial contract of employment.
The value of the land in question is not stated, if ever this happened to be true then we are very disturbed and concerned with this growing trend of council officials given land when more than 121 000 residents remain on the housing waiting list with no prospects of receiving land.
Ndlovu alleged that there has been a noticeable trend between the Town Clerk and Bulawayo Mayor Solomon Mguni doing each other favours at least reciprocal one after the other.
Respected journalist Nqaba Matshazi said BCC should get rid of Dube due to his warped sense of entitlement. He posted on Twitter:
That was the best way to protect Bulawayo’s vote. Get rid of that entitled man who kept saying I fought for this country. Thina sachazwa yinhlamba and missed the bigger picture.
People from Bulawayo were more interesting in Kambarami’s ethnicity and ignored very serious allegations against the town clerk.
All the guy offered were insults, entitlement, greed and corruption. They made their beds and now the town clerk is showing his true colours.
Dube has been offered stand number 14661 measuring 24407 hectares in Selbourne Park.
He became Bulawayo Town Clerk in 2016 and is now seeking an extension of his employment contract, which expires on September 30, 2020.