BULAWAYO mayor, Martin Moyo yesterday said his council was divided on whether to arrest illegal vendors or adopt a more humane approach of allowing them to operate in the face of high joblessness.
BY NQOBANI NDLOVU
Moyo admitted council had lost the battle against illegal vending, adding the local authority has agreed to allow the street sellers to operate in the central business district, but on condition that they pay $1 daily rentals.
A number of vendors are choosing to shun operating from legal vending points, saying the ones designated by council had low business, a situation that has sparked running battles between the municipal police officers and the informal traders.
Recent council minutes reveal that the local authority had abandoned its hard-line approach against illegal vendors.
“It is a balancing act. On one hand, we want to maintain order and cleanliness and at the same time we want to be seen to be humane and sympathetic to their plight. Life is hard and they will genuinely be trying to make a living,” Moyo told Southern Eye in an interview yesterday.
“A suggestion has been brought to council that we levy the illegal vendors a $1 per day, but the challenge is that we do not have the manpower to do the collections and that is why there is insistence that the monies be paid at the Revenue Hall and at Dugmore offices.
“We, however, keep encouraging illegal vendors to get registered so that they operate freely. It is cheap to operate legally as one has to pay only $12 per month as opposed to $1 a day, which translates to $30 per month.”
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According to recent council minutes, city fathers had also suggested engaging vendors who operate legally to deal with illegal informal traders by, for example, forcing them to legalise their operations.
“The (suspended) deputy mayor (Gift Banda) also felt that the department should not wait for vendors to visit Dugmore offices to pay, but should also come up with strategies of collecting cash from them on site.
“Vendors could be persuaded to manage themselves through group leaders, who would also assist to identify illegal vendors,” the minutes read in part.
The mayor is quoted concurring, saying council “should concentrate on revenue collection rather than dealing with vendors, [as] this was not healthy”.
