Residents of Gwanda have expressed outrage at the way their local authority is selling and allocating residential stands in the town.
Extracts from the Gwanda residents social media chats show that the residents are extremely angry with the council that continues to distribute residential stands on “a first come with cash first serve basis” as described by the residents.
According to the residents, most people from within Gwanda are failing to acquire the stands which they claim to be very expensive and not affordable by the average person in Gwanda.
The stands in the town cost between a minimum of $3500 for a 200m2 at High Density suburbs to as much as $11000 for a low density suburb stand.
The residents claim that the outrageous pricing of the stands has created land barons in the town who come from as far afield as Harare with huge amounts of money to buy as much land as they can.
Bulawayo24 news spoke to the Secretary General of the Gwanda Residents Association Mr. Bekezela Maduma Fuzwayo who has been very vocal on the issue and also echoed the sentiments of the majority of the residents of the town.
According to Fuzwayo, the local authority is not considerate of the plights of the local people who can not afford to pay cash upfront for the stands.
“We are not saying council should give us stands for free, but what we are saying is that they must work out modalities that will assist the poorest person in Gwanda who has been on the housing waiting list since 1990 while living in a council rental one roomed house,” he said.
“We very well understand that council needs cash but there has to come a time when civic responsibility rises above the need for money. They can have a few stands set aside for locals to purchase in installments over a long period without raising the huge deposit needed and then another section for those coming in to just but land and going,” he said.
The sentiments come after the local authority recently advertised in the media for cash buyers of 300m2 stands at a cost of $5100.
An option of a long term purchase with a deposit of $2000 needed upfront and monthly installments of $131 was put in place but the local people could still not afford the deposit needed.
According to Fuzwayo, the stands which totalled 74 and are said to have been a set off deal between council and a land developer in the town, presented council with the opportunity to show it’s civic commitment to the residents by allocating the same to locals on the housing waiting list.
“Council missed an opportunity to show us their commitment to us on these stands, they could have simply gone through the waiting list and invited takers from the waiting list and offered the stands on that same $130 per month for 48 months without the $2000 deposit, at least an average person in Gwanda would have got a chance to build,” he said.
“There is a huge unemployment in Gwanda and most of our residents are civil servants, it’s embarrassing that we have dike senior civil servants in the town living in government houses sharing with juniors for over twenty years just because the way we sale stands does not take into cognisance the local people’s financial status,” he said.
The residents leader further reiterated that people from outside the town were rushing in to purchase the stands and resale to the locals at a premium in installments which council could have also extended to the residents.
“Take as an example we have one land developer who acquired over 300 high density stands from council at about $3000 each after only paying a minimal deposit to council and is now selling the same stands to local people at almost $200 monthly payments for 48 months which means he is making double the amount he acquired the stands for from council,” lamented Fuzwayo.
“It’s sad that we are being misquoted by some sectors when we talk about this issue. They claim we are saying people in Harare should not but land in Gwanda, they have a right to do so but council has a civic responsibility to protect us at its residents and must accord us a flexible opportunity to get housing.”
The residents’ social media postings seem to be threatening the local authority of a likelihood of a civil unrest if the stands issue in the town is not addressed.
Comment from the Town Clerk Mrs Prisca Nkala could not immediately be obtained as she was said to be out of office together with the Director of Housing.
However, a council official at the housing office said that council was desperately looking for money to settle it’s several outstanding bills and will accept cash from anyone from anywhere willing to buy the stands..
