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Increase Gumbo in Mwenezi
Mwenezi Rural District Council (MRDC) has come under fire from residents at Rutenga Growth Point who are unhappy with the local authority’s failure to collect refuse over the past five months, exposing them to diseases. Residents accuse Mwenezi RDC of allowing garbage to pile up throughout the sprawling growth point. The complaints against council emerged during door-to-door consultations being undertaken by Nhewa Town Planners, residents and representatives of Mwenezi RDC. Most residents bemoaned the decline in service delivery, particularly at the growth point, and called for urgent intervention to arrest the situation.

‘’Our council has completely forgotten about Rutenga, where refuse has been piling up everywhere because it has not been collected for the past five months. We have repeatedly appealed to the local authority to at least collect the refuse at weekly intervals but to no avail,” said Rutenga Ward 18 resident Mr Archibald Chibanda. Another resident, Mrs Leona Sibanda, said the uncolected garbage was a health hazard Ms Sibanda blamed council for sleeping on duty after failing to collect refuse at Rutenga since July this year.

“We last saw a refuse collection truck here at Rutenga in July and as residents, we appeal to council for them to do something, especially non-biodegradable materials like diapers and sanitary ware,” she said. ‘’Even our children are now at the risk of diseases if they come into contact with some of the uncollected garbage, particularly now that the rains have already started falling,” she added. Mwenezi RDC chief executive Mr Albert Chivanga conceded that there were problems in refuse collection, but said efforts were underway to redress the problem.

“We are aware about the situation at Rutenga, but the problem at the moment is that our only refuse collection truck is no longer functioning after it broke down. We have contracted another person with a bigger truck to collect refuse and will we hope by the end of this week, the refuse would have been collected,”he said.

“Council has also assigned a team to dig a dumpsite where the refuse will be deposited so that Rutenga reclaims its yester year cleanliness,’’ said Mr Chivanga.