Michael
Ndiweni,
executive
director
of
the
Bulawayo
Vendors
and
Traders
Organisation,
said
the
move
to
raise
littering
fines
is
necessary
to
ensure
polluters
take
responsibility
for
their
waste.
“I
agree
with
Bulawayo
City
Council
that
they
should
increase
fines
for
littering
because
it
then
becomes
a
deterrent
for
people
who
are
going
to
litter
and
throw
waste
everywhere,”
Ndiweni
said.
“Traders
must
be
educated
about
littering,
but
some
already
know
it
is
bad.
Yet,
for
one
reason
or
another,
there
seems
to
be
a
negative
attitude
toward
their
city.
People
throw
waste
out
of
car
windows
or
drop
things
like
banana
peels
and
ice-cream
wrappers
in
the
streets.”
Ndiweni
highlighted
the
waste
management
challenges
in
busy
commercial
zones
such
as
6th
Avenue,
noting
that
shared
responsibility
between
the
council
and
traders
is
essential.
“6th
Avenue
generates
a
lot
of
waste.
Traders
must
also
be
responsible
in
terms
of
paying
so
that
the
council
can
have
enough
resources
to
service
and
deploy
refuse
trucks
to
collect
waste
and
take
it
to
the
landfill,”
he
said.
“Cleaning
on
its
own
is
not
enough,
as
some
people
do
not
want
to
change
their
attitude.”
The
Bulawayo
City
Council
has
blamed
residents,
vendors
and
businesses
for
much
of
the
illegal
dumping
in
city
centres,
particularly
in
sanitary
lanes.
In
response,
the
council
is
now
strictly
enforcing
anti-litter
by-laws,
with
fines
ranging
from
US$30
to
US$100
depending
on
the
severity
of
the
offence.
Officials
say
stricter
penalties
aim
to
reduce
littering
and
promote
civic
responsibility,
following
a
series
of
clean-up
initiatives
intended
to
restore
public
spaces
and
encourage
sustainable
waste
management.