By Marshall Bwanya
Harare – Embattled Harare City Council (HCC) town clerk Hosiah Chisango, who is currently in state custody, disclosed how several Citizen Coalition for Change (CCC) opposition councillors exploited their positions to facilitate the regularisation of illegal settlements masquerading as housing schemes.
Chisango, appearing before the ongoing Commission of Inquiry into the governance of HCC said regularisation of illegal settlements not approved by the local government ministry was done through a controversial system called “Rotation.”
Under the Rotation scheme councillors would deliberately ensure that HCC officials have acting positions and are not substantive in order to rotate them to other positions if they do not comply with their directive.
Chisango giving his testimony to the Commission of Inquiry said the land invasions across the capital were organized and rife towards election season.
“These are organized invasions.”
“Prior to elections you have high land invasions,” said Chisango.
The Commission of Inquiry heard that the Crowbough settlements which had 32 court orders including Pay Schemes and Home Industries which required demolition were illegally regularised after Budiriro South, ward 29, councillor Blessing Duma, who was the chairperson of the joint environmental health and housing committee on May 2023 pushed of its regularisation.
Similarly, Hannah Pay Scheme in Budiriro was regularized following Duma’s interventions.
“These areas invaded prior to 2018, council moved to remove those settlements but unfortunately we had Covid 19, but then council made a resolution that let’s regularise some of the settlements.
“A council resolution to regularize Crowbough settlements and Hannah Pay Scheme in Budiriro was done after Budiriro (South) councillor Duma was the chairperson of the joint committee pushed for the regularisation,” said Chisango.
Chisango implicated councillors A. Shingadeya, C.J. Nyatsuro, S. Dhliwayo, C. Zumba, G. T. Hadebe, J. Z. Kautsa, G. Mandere, PT. Mangwiro-Chikwaka, and C. Runyowa in the controversial resolution which regularised Crowbough settlements and Hannah Pay Scheme.
Thabani Mpofu, the Commission of Inquiry’s Evidence Leader, when he pressed Chisango if the regularisation of Crowbough settlements and Hannah Pay Scheme was tamantount to criminal abuse of office, Chisango responded: “I would agree with you.”
The Commission of Inquiry also heard that Crowbough settlements were regularised despite the fact they were being irrigated by wastewater which could potentially lead to a health scare.
In addition to that, health experts such as the Environmental Management Agency were not consulted were not consulted on the sustainability of regularising these settlements for human habitation.
Chisango went on to state that rotation of positions for HCC officials was done at the height of CCC factional brawls soon after recalls.
