Siphakeme .Mnindwa
Raymond Jaravaza, raymondjaravaza@gmail.com
THE Bulawayo City Council (BCC) has intensified efforts to restore order in the city centre, deploying additional municipal police officers to tackle the growing lawlessness caused by the influx of illegal vendors.
This follows the recent graduation of 173 municipal police officers, providing a much-needed boost to the city’s security department.
Several streets in the city centre have become hotspots for illegal vending activities, including the sale of groceries, second-hand clothes and fruits. These activities often obstruct both vehicular and pedestrian traffic, with vendors operating from early morning until late at night.
Some daring vendors even set up “shops” selling tomatoes and vegetables on pavements as early as 7am
In the past, the BCC cited the shortage of municipal police officers as the main reason for failing to deal decisively with the ballooning influx of illegal vendors who have taken over virtually all the street corners in the city centre.
The council spokesperson Mrs Nesisa Mpofu, said the deployment of the new municipal police officers is part of a broader strategy to address the proliferation of informal businesses in the city.
“Municipal police officers will continue to conduct daily routines aimed at putting an end to informal businesses that have been mushrooming around the city centre in the last few months. We are targeting several problematic streets where informal businesses had taken root, resulting in chaos and lawlessness,” she said.
Mrs Mpofu said municipal police officers will continue to conduct daily routines aimed at putting an end to illegal vending.
The BCC’s efforts to restore cleanliness, safety and order in the City of Kings have been welcomed by residents.
Mrs Nompilo Ndiweni, who operates a clothing shop along Sixth Avenue, commended the council’s efforts, urging them to maintain a permanent presence in problematic areas.
“We are losing business to illegal vendors, especially second-hand clothes dealers, who do not pay rentals and salaries. For the first time in a long time, there were no vendors in front of our shops on Monday and today after they were chased away by municipal police,” she said.
A newly deployed municipal police officer stationed at the corner of Sixth Avenue and Fort Street, said the presence of officers has deterred vendors from returning to their usual spots during the day.
“We were deployed in groups of three or four officers to keep vendors away from this area. They have not set foot at their usual vending spots but maybe they will come back after dark when we knock off,” said the officer.
The duties of the 173 new municipal police officers extend beyond policing illegal vending. Their responsibilities include safeguarding council assets, monitoring vehicles entering and leaving council premises, preventing theft, representing the council in court, escorting vehicles transporting cash and fuel as well as patrolling council installations.
