Speaking
at
a
National
Residents’
Summit
in
Bulawayo
on
Thursday,
hosted
by
the
Bulawayo
Progressive
Residents
Association
(BPRA),
Cllr
Coltart
said
national
policies
and
laws
were
running
contrary
to
the
principle
of
devolution
enshrined
in
the
constitution.
“Although
we
have
strong
constitutional
provisions
that
should
promote
devolution,
the
reality
on
the
ground
is
that
there
are
measures
in
place
which
are
accosted
to
devolution,”
he
said.
He
cited
road
maintenance
as
one
of
the
areas
affected,
saying
funds
previously
allocated
to
councils
through
vehicle
licence
fees
were
now
controlled
by
the
Zimbabwe
National
Road
Administration
(ZINARA).
“That
money
now
goes
to
ZINARA
and
we
literally
have
to
beg
to
get
some
of
our
money
back
to
repair
roads.
That
is
contrary
to
the
principle
of
devolution,”
he
added.
The
mayor
also
criticised
the
government’s
takeover
of
Bulawayo’s
water
infrastructure.
“Ratepayers
of
this
city
over
decades
built
our
own
dams
and
our
own
water
infrastructure.
But
those
dams
were
unilaterally
taken
over
by
the
Zimbabwe
National
Water
Authority
(ZINWA)
decades
ago
and
we
now
have
to
buy
our
own
water
back,”
he
said.
Cllr
Coltart
further
accused
central
government
of
directing
how
devolution
funds
should
be
spent,
citing
the
purchase
of
fire
engines
from
Belarus
at
US$400,000
each.
“We
could
have
got
top-of-the-range
Mercedes
Benz
or
Volvo
fire
engines
for
two-thirds
the
price.
It
is
another
example
of
how
we
pay
lip
service
to
the
principle
of
devolution,”
he
said.
The
mayor
also
raised
alarm
over
Bulawayo’s
worsening
water
crisis,
with
the
city
currently
on
a
130-hour
water
shedding
schedule.
Some
residents
report
receiving
water
only
once
every
two
or
three
weeks.
“Our
water
structure
is
groaning.
It
is
over
40
years
old
and
way
beyond
its
economic
lifespan.
Ncema
Dam’s
water
treatment
works,
built
in
the
1940s,
are
in
dire
need
of
complete
rehabilitation,”
he
said.
Cllr
Coltart
warned
that
without
urgent
investment
in
new
dams
and
infrastructure,
Bulawayo’s
water,
sanitation
and
hygiene
systems
would
remain
in
a
“critical
state.”