Activist Talent Rusere has called for the immediate disbandment of the Harare City Council (HCC), accusing the administration of financial irregularities, including manipulating financial systems and misusing taxpayer money.
Rusere has written to both Parliament and the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission (ZACC), outlining what he says is widespread corruption and mismanagement within the council.
He urged President Emmerson Mnangagwa to use his powers under the Urban Councils Act [Chapter 29:15] to suspend the current council and appoint an interim commission to manage the city’s affairs.
According to Rusere, in 2019, the council ended its contract with the BIQ-Sage system, citing license fee issues, but he claims this was used to hide US$200 million in missing funds. He said:
“For six months (March–August 2019), the Council operated without any receipting system. Millions in taxes paid by citizens during this window have no audit trail, representing a massive theft of public funds.
“The subsequent adoption of the ‘Sage’ system was not a ‘stop-gap’ measure but a long-term strategy to utilise known loopholes.
“Records of ‘proof of concept’ sessions between Sage and Proman show the Council knew the system allowed ‘Super Users’ to switch off audit servers.
“This enabled the creation and deletion of accounts and the tampering of databases under the false pretence of ‘enhancing the software’s receipting speed.’
“The lack of accountability is personified in the case of IT expert and Sage Super User, Mr David Madzivanyika.
“Despite allegations of manipulating figures to loot over $4.5 million, his suspension was lifted within 30 days without public explanation or criminal prosecution.
“This pattern of ‘catch and release’ within the municipality proves that the administration is no longer fit to oversee public assets.”
Rusere said that the hardship faced by Harare City Council workers is the result of poor administration and the council’s failure to honour a 2016–2017 agreement to give workers residential stands instead of unpaid salaries.
He also called for an immediate investigation into the Municipal Workers Union of Zimbabwe (MWUZ) and for it to be disbanded.
Rusere accused the union of neglecting its duties, saying its leaders live in luxury while the workers they represent struggle with three months of unpaid salaries and extreme poverty. He said:
“The diversion of taxpayer funds has resulted in a city in terminal decline. With no water supply, a dilapidated road network, and a drainage system that leaves the CBD flooded after only 10 minutes of rain, the HCC has failed in its primary duty under the Constitution of Zimbabwe to provide basic services.”
Rusere called for a government-led audit of the 2019 receipting blackout and the Sage system’s “Super User” logs, along with the immediate enforcement of the 2016 land allocation agreements and the payment of all outstanding salaries to council workers.
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