Vendors could soon be moved out of the central business district if plans by the City of Harare to complete the construction of new bus termini outside bears fruits with Acting Town Clerk, Engineer Hosiah Chisango saying they have set their sight on delivering the new ranks by the end of 100 days.
In an interview with 263Chat, City of Harare Acting Town Clerk, Engineer Hosiah Chisango confirmed that the new bus ranks under construction will likely be functional at the end of the first 100 days of this year in line with the Rapid Results initiative.
City of Harare has struggled against upsurge of informal vendors in the CBD but Chisango is optimistic their new plan will help in de-congesting streets while reducing disorder which has of late become the order of the day in the capital: “What is important to us is that the vendors as the informal sector needs to be housed and they need to be located in certain places so in the process as we bring up our ranks, we also need to provide vending sites for particular products.
“We will have particular sites and once we have got those sites well serviced then we will move the vendors.”
He added that the present situation calls for city fathers to continue engaging vendors who are defiant against moving out of the CBD to see the light.
Meanwhile vendors have blasted City of Harare for being dis-organised and always selling them a dummy since 2015 when the idea of new vending stalls started.
We are sick and tired of City of Harare’s promises, in 2015 they once promised that they were going to provide us with selling points but to this day no action has been taken since that year,” said Ruvarashe Mabhiza, a vegetable vendor.
“We will continue to play a hide and seek game with the City of Harare every day because vending is our only means of survival, we can’t stay at home for the next 100 days, where do they think we can get our rentals from, Chideme and his crew should be serious they should know that we are suffering here in in Zimbabwe,” said Tichaona Chikukwa an airtime vendor.
Another vendor, Gogo Chizema said: “There is corruption within City of Harare they spend a lot of money at the expense of us vendors they drive nice cars and stay in nice houses without paying rentals so why do they want to destroy our lives vending have become our only means of survival l tell you God will punish them.”
