CLEANLINESS should be a way of life under the Second Republic as evidenced by the new-look Pomona Waste Management site which marks the beginning of a new era in the restoration of Harare to its former Sunshine City status, President Mnangagwa has said.
In the past years, the capital city has been on a rapid decline fuelled by ineptitude and corruption by the opposition-led Harare City Council, which prioritised self-interests at the expense of service delivery.
Speaking following a ground breaking ceremony and a tour of the new-look Pomona Waste Management site being undertaken by Geo Pomona Waste Management Pvt Ltd in Harare yesterday, President Mnangagwa said the time to clean the mess in the capital city has begun.
“This project serves as testament to my Government’s commitment to seeing communities transform to world-class standards, where residents enjoy the ambiance of modern built environments.
“It also marks the beginning of a new era in the restoration of our Sunshine City, distinguished by clean environments and friendly communities. The journey to Vision 2030 and realisation of the aspirations under our National Development Strategy is multi-pronged,” he said.
President Mnangagwa also bemoaned the decaying standards across all cities and towns but said action is being taken to improve the situation in sync with the national aspirations of a modern and developed society.
“Over the years, I have observed that our once beautiful infrastructure in cities and towns has fast been deteriorating. This has seen potholes on our roads; erratic water supplies and poor street lighting, amongst other challenges. Collectively, we must address these matters.
“I take the opportunity of this event to call upon Harare City Council and all local authorities to scale up the mobilisation of financial resources to develop modern infrastructure befitting a prosperous and empowered upper middle-income status,” he said.
The President said he observed with satisfaction that stakeholders in the private sector, community groups and individual citizens had integrated the clean-up day into their annual work calendars.
“I commend this development and urge all players to consistently observe the clean-up calendar event as we strive to make cleanliness our way of life. It is my expectation that the milestones attained to date should be celebrated and consolidated.
“The transition to Vision 2030 and development of world class cities requires seamless unity of purpose and greater collaboration as we undertake citizen-focused and mutually beneficial programmes and projects,” he said.
President Mnangagwa added that the old ways of doing business should now be a thing of the past.
“Let us restore the dignity and well-being of our communities. The culture of quality service delivery and putting the people first must be cardinal principles of our public sector.”
On its part, the President said his administration remains committed to nurturing clean environments and minimising incidences of diseases, while enhancing the aesthetics of communities.
“I am enthused that the National Clean-up and Beautification Programme is continuously being entrenched into our culture as Zimbabweans. However, more can still be done.”
President Mnangagwa said access to a clean environment is a fundamental basic human right and is the lifeblood towards achieving sustainable socio-economic development.
The groundbreaking ceremony and tour of the new-look Pomona waste management site was attended by several top dignitaries including Vice Presidents Dr Constantino Chiwenga and Kembo Mohadi, Cabinet ministers, 22 members of the diplomatic corps, service chiefs among others.
Herald
