Aspiring Zanu-PF councilor for Kwekwe’s Ward 14 Cde Tawanda Munikwa has resuscitated a council recreational park that had not only become an eyesore in Newtown Suburb but had been converted into a drug and crime haven by rogue youths.
Neglected by the local authority for years and located within the leafy Newton area, the Tsuro Park had developed tall grass and a thicket that became a hide out for drug and substance abusers where sexual offences were also reportedly taking place.
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The thicket also provided a perfect hideout for criminals who would rob residents, while open defaecation also posed a health hazard in the area.
With the help of the local community and the local authority, Cde Munikwa facilitated the clearing of the thicket by cutting down the tall grass and trees as well as removing smelly human waste. “I am grateful to the council for providing us with equipment that we used to clear this place. I am only a facilitator but most of the job was done by the council and the community and I am grateful for that.
The place had become an eyesore and also posed a danger to the people of Newtown as criminal activities, drug abuse and sexual offences were now an order of the day in the area,” he said. Going forward, Cde Munikwa said, the area will be used for recreational activities and help curb drug and substance abuse that is rife in the country.
“We are still in talks with the council to see how best we can use the place. The community is however proposing that the place be leased out to a private player or council redevelops it into a recreational park,” he said.
He said preparations were in place to fence the place and start planting and watering the lawn before activities can be started. “I am told the water taps are there but have been vandalised so we are working towards resuscitating them and starting planting and watering the lawn.
We are looking at a situation whereby there will be a modern restaurant with a bar, pool tables and jumping castles for children among other facilities where people can spend time instead of focusing on drug and other illicit activities,” said Cde Munikwa.
Besides the recreational facility projects, Cde Munikwa has also played a key role in the curbing of crime in the area through the re-introduction of a police post. “We were facing problems with crime, especially robberies where armed robbers were getting into people’s houses.
But the police have since reopened their post in the Msasa Park area and the cases have since subsided after they came. We continue working together with our police to arrest criminals,” he said.
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