Bulawayo Councillor Makes the Case for Paying Rates

Bulawayo City Council official Denis Ndlovu displaying figures owed to the City Council by defaulters during the community meeting in ward 29

Bulawayo, Zimbabwe: Ward 29’s Councillor and community leader, Monica Lubimbi, has urged residents to pay their rates and bills to drive the Municipality into improved service delivery.

She announced this when she was addressing a resident’s meeting in her ward last weekend. “Please Bantu be Nkosi, lets pay and update our rates and arrears so that our council will be able to deliver efficient services”, said Mrs Lubimbi.

The Councillor is a beneficiary of ZDDT’s Community based leadership skills workshop that was held in September 2014 in Bulawayo recently and is a product of the Trust’s Servant Leadership programme.

The workshop aimed to improve communication between leaders and residents to ensure positive growth in local government and to also encourage community spirit of ownership of council facilities and amenities.

Councillor Lubimbi’s plea was received with applause from those attending and expressed her appreciation to the more than one hundred residents who left their homes to listen to their leader’s address.

Bulawayo City Council’s Accounts representative, Denis Ndlovu, who attended the residents meeting, also appealed to the community to pay their rates and to
maintain paying their water bills as it will ultimately benefit them.

“I would like to applaud you, the Community of Ward 29, for your effort and courage in asking questions on service delivery. You have seen how hard it is if you don’t pay your rates. If you are going to bring up to date your arrears, you will always see your city returning to its glory,” added Ndlovu.

ZDDT promotes a strong partnership between residents, their representatives and the administration and one that it based on mutual obligation so as to improve the quality of life for residents.