Councils want Zinara disbanded and stopped from collecting vehicle licence fees

Local authorities have ganged up against the Zimbabwe National Road Administration (Zinara) accusing it of causing the collapse of the country’s urban road networks.

Speaking to NewsDay, Urban Councils Authority of Zimbabwe president and Harare mayor, Bernard Manyenyeni said councils were united in the call to have Zinara disbanded and stopped from collecting vehicle licence fees which were previously collected by local authorities. Kwekwe mayor, Matenda Madzoke said Zinara should manage tollgate fees and other remittances, while leaving councils to collect vehicle licence fees so that they could maintain the roads.

Mayors who spoke to the publication complained that they were getting inadequate funds from Zinara for road maintenance. Kadoma mayor, Muchineyi Chinyanganya echoed the same sentiments saying his council receives $170 000 yearly against an annual budgetary requirement of at least $1 million to service city roads.