Roads funds: Harare, Zinara smoke peace pipe

Zim Now Writer

Differences that were simmering between the Zimbabwe National Roads Administration and the City of Harare over roads funds disbursement seem to be a thing of the past now following a high-level meeting aimed at has ironing their misunderstandings.

Harare Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume and Zinara board chairperson George Manyaya met and agreed to revisit government policy on funds disbursement that was put in place over 20 years ago.

Zinara and Harare were locked in a dispute over the modalities of the funds' disbursement.

Mafume charged that Zinara had failed to disburse millions of US dollars for their use while the Roads authority maintained that money could only be disbursed after the local authority had acquitted how past allowances had been used.

The Harare Mayor said during the meeting that they had realised that a councils’ resolution passed in 2002 denied Harare access to adequate funding as the resolution passed by all 92 of Zimbabwe’s local authorities stated that councils agreed to share equitably the sum total of all road-related fees.

The Harare mayor felt this was no longer applicable since Harare had the highest number of vehicles and hence should get a bigger share.

Alternatively, Mafume noted, each council should stand on its own.

“We tried to iron out our differences. We made our demands and suggested the way forward,” said Mafume after the meeting.

He added: “We discussed regularity of disbursements and their inadequacy as we have missed out on over US$2 million in five years.

“We suggested that since Harare motorists pay the bulk of vehicle licences, they have a legitimate expectation that their money will be used to fix Harare roads not any other.

“Zinara promised to look at the formula used to disburse funds which was done in the 2000s. The board promised to present this to the minister urgently, so we relook at the formula.”

Added Mafume: “We are asking the public to work with us as we workout modalities for our road network. We should do better for the motoring public, there is no excuse for what it is experiencing on a daily basis.

“We must depoliticise issues to do with roads because they do not ask for political affiliation.

“The Zinara that is before us is a new Zinara, different from the Zinara I was talking about of massages, and I do hope with a new chairperson live up to their word.”

Zinara has received plaudits over its work on national highways, but most urban road networks are in a state of disrepair with potholes a common sight in both residential and industrial roads.