By Flata Kavinga
Kwekwe district development coordinator Fortune Mpungu has warned that heads will roll at local authorities that fail to provide adequate services to residents.
Speaking during the Municipality of Redcliff full council meeting, Mpungu said the new Ministry of Local Government and Public Works permanent secretary, Tafadzwa Muguti, would soon visit every district in Zimbabwe to assess service delivery on the ground.
“He is not going to wait for reports that come from us or from council. He wants to see things on the ground,” Mpungu said.
Mpungu said Muguti would inspect refuse collection, roads, water supplies and other services provided by local authorities.
“Now, the expectations are high. The promise is that heads will roll for failing to perform. So I am warning you to improve service delivery,” he said.
He urged the council to ensure that residents could see and experience the services being provided.
“Communities should feel the services that you are providing. So going forward, your budget will not be approved if your accounts are not up to date, especially audits,” Mpungu said.
He also called on the council to address salary arrears owed to its workers, warning that outstanding debts could expose the local authority to legal action.
“We need to work hard on salary arrears for our workers. If there is a backlog for salaries for our workers, it is now time to work on that because this is a debt,” he said.
Mpungu reminded councillors that local authorities were corporate bodies that could sue or be sued.
He said accountability for poor performance would extend beyond mayors and town clerks to district development coordinators.
“If a local authority fails to perform, not only the mayor or town clerk will be chopped, the DDC for that area will go as well,” he said.
Mpungu appealed to the council to improve its performance, engage residents and communicate the challenges affecting service delivery.
“I want to appeal to you to work hard, go the extra mile so that we give residents improved services. Let’s engage the community so that we meet their expectations and also explain the challenges that we are facing,” he said.
The warning comes as the government intensifies monitoring of local authorities amid concerns over refuse collection, road maintenance, water supplies, financial management and salary arrears.
