ELLEN MLAMBO
CHIPINGE TIMES REPORTER

CHIPINGE- The Chipinge Business and Residents Trust (CBRT) has written a damning letter over the non-participation of all eight elected Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) councillors in budget consultation meetings.
The letter dated October 24, 2023, is addressed to the District Development Coordinator (DDC) William Mashava and copied to acting Chipinge Town Secretary James Mutemera.
CBRT programs coordinator and public relations officer Amato Rungano confirmed the letter to Chipinge Times.
Mashava said he is yet to receive the letter. He however, said this is costing ouncil as it is expensive to organise budget consultations.
“I have not seen the letter. However, It’s the residents who must deal with those they elected as councillors if they are doing a disservice to them. My feeling is that the councillors must open up and tell the electorate why they are not attending meetings. This means that they are going for personal gains as opposed to majority benefit. Organising a meeting is expensive and what it means is if another meeting is to held, they will be eating into residents’ coffers,” said Mashava
The letter chief among other issues states that councilors disengagement is not in the interests of service delivery. It also states that they should be directly involved in the budget formulation process as it is the local authority’s fiscal policy for 2024.
The letter demands that the matter be brought to the attention of the Minister of Local Government and Public Works Winston Chitando.
“We have noted with serious concern as Residents Representatives that all elected urban wards councillors except one women’s quota’s proportional representative councillor have not been attending special policy making meetings at Chipinge Town Council, that is the budget review meeting held on 18 October 2023 and the budget consultation meetings held on October 24, across all urban wards.
“We are worried that we are in the process of formulating the 2024 CTC budget without the presence of elected councillors yet the budget document paper is the fiscal policy to be used in the year 2024, at law. May you please take this matter seriously and escalate the same to the Secretary for Provincial Affairs and Devolution Manicaland and to the Minister of Local Government,” reads the letter.
Council Chairperson Kingstone Dhlumo said the councillors fear being recalled for disobeying party directives.
“Residents should be concerned but we can’t risk going against party orders. We can be recalled anytime and we don’t have security with regards to our country’s legislation.
“We want to represent residents and they should be sympathising with us. It’s sad that at a time when we were geared to serve the community, an unknown person is disrupting our party,” said Dhlumo.
The councillors last week boycotted a budget review meeting at National Social Security Authority (NSSA) Recreational Park. Only one Zanu PF women quota councillor Enesi Mhlanga attended the meeting. She left before proceedings were finished.

Rungano said the disengagement process by Chipinge town councillors is not in the interests of service delivery.
He added that as an association, they take great exception to the councillors’ disengagement exercise.
“Councillors as policy makers are doing a disservice to the very residents that elected them into office. They have conveniently decided to disengage at a time when the 2024 budget is being formulated.
“The budget is a fiscal policy that assists council in offering service to residents. Councillors are policy makers who represent ratepayers in the budget formulation. They are being anti- residents, anti-development and serving their own personal interests,” said Rungano.
in line with president Nelson Chamisa’s order for party Parliamentarians and councillors to disengage.