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Blessings Chidakwa

Municipal Reporter

A central Government planning team has been sent to Glen Norah to investigate allocation of stands on tarred streets, although the Harare City Council insists that the land was wrongly tarred years ago.

Harare City Council torched a storm after facilitating and allocating several residential stands on tarred streets in the city, claiming the land was not a formal road despite the fact that the previous council tarred the street.

The council also converted recreational areas and wetlands to housing stands, disregarding laid-down by-laws, as it made rich pickings from desperate home seekers.

Some of the streets in Glen Norah were converted into stands, with a house under construction, already at window level, erected right in the middle of Mabanda Crescent opposite house number 664 in Glen Norah A.

There were other two completed cottages waiting for final touches in the middle of Narira Crescent in Glen Norah A, when our news crew visited the suburb.

Another completed structure built next to house number 1486 close by Narira Street around Glen Norah Flats was also erected in the middle of the road two months ago.

Secretary for Harare Provincial Affairs and Devolution Mr Tafadzwa Muguti yesterday said his office had asked the Provincial Spatial Planning Team to look into this matter urgently across the province.

“Those roads are more than 30 years old. How does someone now build on a road and the council says the road, which is tarred by the way, was wrongly put?

“We have master plans for all local authorities going back over 60 years, the maps exist. We need to remind some council officials that we need an organised local Government,” he said.

Mr Muguti said the days of corruptly allocating stands are gone.

“They finished playing grounds for children, designated school and clinics grounds and now the desperation is leading to roads being built upon. To make matters worse, the houses being built do not even have approved plans,”  he said.

Harare City Council has defended allocating several residential stands on tarred streets saying the roads in Glen Norah suburb were put there 20 years ago as an illegal structure and the stands were properly surveyed and allocated lawfully.

“People need to get the facts right before going political on purely procedural matters,” said the city.

“The stands are very legal. The road is the illegal structure. No one has been prejudiced. All have access to their properties. We are delivering houses to the people.”

Combined Harare Residents Association programmes manager Mr Rueben Akili said the allocation of stands on roads is clear evidence of skipping legal processes and lack of planning for the area.

The absence of the citizens’ voice in the planning processes of the city is worrying. The approval process of such stands cannot pass the integrity test,” he said.

Harare Resident Trust director Mr Precious Shumba yesterday said the reality is that the council has failed to enforce provisions of the Regional, Town and Country Planning Act.

“The road has existed for a long time. The City of Harare has to produce all the documentation to support their claims by providing dates when the land was identified, surveyed, the responsible town planners, the circulation, environmental management committee minutes, full council resolutions and the land sales,” he said.