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Harare resolves to engage vendors

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HARARE City councillors have resolved to engage vendors and other informal traders in the city to encourage them to pay levies to the municipality instead of paying “land barons” who are racking thousands of dollars by illegally charging unlicensed traders.

HARARE City councillors have resolved to engage vendors and other informal traders in the city to encourage them to pay levies to the municipality instead of paying “land barons” who are racking thousands of dollars by illegally charging unlicensed traders.

BY MOSES MATENGA

Debating during a full council meeting on Thursday, councillors said the city should benefit from the influx of vendors by collecting money instead of living the work to “cash” and “land barons” who were demanding at least $1 per day from each vendor.

If council manages to tax the vendors $1 each a day, the local authority could pocket at least $100 000 as the number of people engaged in vending in the city centre was estimated to be more than 100 000.

Making his maiden speech, the chairman for the newly-established informal sector committee, councillor Wilton Janjazi said: “We are overwhelmed by this issue. I believe those people are not there out of choice, but are forced by the situation. They expect our protection as a city.”

“We will work with them and engagement is the way to go. We are not mainly going to chase out people. At least we are going to engage them to ensure the city is clean. They have to give us something from what they are doing and we must tap financially from them. The most important thing is to engage them,” he said.

Finance committee chairperson councillor Tranos Moyo said it was his wish to see to it that council moved with speed to collect money from the informal sector.

“I want to challenge the town clerk, we understand there are land barons out there taking money from them, how do we collect money?” Moyo asked.

Although some councillors sympathised with vendors, saying it was difficult to take money from them as they were poor, several of them said it was fair that council, instead of barons, collect money from them.

Councillor Herbert Gomba said the informal sector should work with council for common good.

“Those in the informal sector should know that there is council. Mayor, it is your responsibility to call the leaders of these people in the informal sector and give them direction. They now have their own council that takes at least a dollar in the streets,” he said.

“If we want $1 from them, let’s work like people who want to engage and come out in the open as council. Your office must be involved and they must know that this is a council decision and that money goes to council.”

Mayor Bernard Manyenyeni said debate on the vending problem must be open and not done in a partisan manner.