A NYANGA woman has asked Quick Blast and Civil Engineering Services and Nyanga Rural District Council to pay her more than US$2 000 to purchase and repair some household property, which was damaged last year due to surface quarry blasting at Messenger’s Camp.
The 46 year-old Tabetha Rakabopa, who is represented by Kelvin Kabaya and Peggy Tavagadza of Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, recently wrote a letter to Nyanga Rural District Council and Quick Blast and Civil Engineering Services demanding payment to carry out some repairs to her damaged property arising out of quarry blasting activities at Messenger’s Camp.
Some of the damaged property, which Rakabopa said will need a total of US$2 644 to purchase and repair, include a kitchen unit, a wardrobe, timber, window glasses and some roofing sheets. Rakabopa said failure to pay the money which she is demanding will leave her with no option but to institute legal action to recover the total amount.
In response to Rakabopa’s letter, Nyanga Rural District Council, which has engaged Warara and Associates Legal Practitioners to represent them, said the local authority is not responsible for the conduct of Quick Blast and Civil Engineering Services, which it says is an independent contractor whom they contracted to provide blasting services which resulted in the damages to Rakabopa’s property.
Earlier on, Nyanga Rural District Council had invited Rakabopa to a roundtable meeting on 3 December 2021 at the local authority’s offices, where a representative of Quick Blast and Civil Engineering Services only identified as Rusere attended with the main agenda being to “discuss and try and resolve the concerns” which the 46 year-old woman had raised in her first letter written on 2 November 2021. However, it appears Nyanga Rural District Council and Quick Blast and Civil Engineering Services have failed and or refused to effect the repairs as demanded by Rakabopa.
