Broken Promises and Neglect: Cowdray Park's Quest for Change

Hlalani Kuhle residents long for transformation of their area especially now following the recent polls which saw the election of a new MP under CCC. Image by Cite

Sixteen years of broken promises and unserviced stands have left Cowdray Park residents disillusioned. With a new MP elected in recent polls, the community looks to the future with hope for change, but concerns about neglected service delivery continue to linger.

BY LIZWE SEBATA, DIVINE DUBE and THUBELIHLE NCUBE | @The_CBNews | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. | SEPT 4, 2023

BULAWAYO (The Citizen Bulletin) — Sixteen years ago, Nomvula Moyo was overjoyed to receive a housing stand in Hlalani Kuhle, a new suburb carved out of Bulawayo in the wake of Operation Murambatsvina.

“Before then I had been a tenant for years,” she recalls. “Moving from one house to the next with grown-up kids because of some troublesome tenants was stressful.”

Like thousands of others, Moyo received an unserviced stand in 2006 through a government allocation program meant to provide housing after Murambatsvina, which had rendered many homeless. But the area remained disconnected from the city's water supply and sewerage system.

“Surprisingly, the local authority continued to bill us for services that didn't exist,” Moyo reveals.

The Local Government Ministry handed Hlalani Kuhle over to the Bulawayo City Council in 2012, but the promised stability never materialised. The government had allocated thousands of stands yet failed to provide basic infrastructure, leaving residents to resort to hazardous pit latrines near their sole water source.

“It goes against all health guidelines,” Moyo notes.

Makeshift efforts to organise boreholes and roads fell flat, with one residents' group allegedly looting funds. The dire conditions became a political issue in Cowdray Park during the country’s August 23 polls.

Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) candidate Pashor Sibanda seized on the failures, campaigning on neglected service delivery. He defeated Zanu-PF's Mthuli Ncube, who had tried patching roads and drilling boreholes to appease dissatisfied residents.

Zanu-PF candidate who lost the constituency seat, Mthuli Ncube had already set his development agenda during election campaigns. Image by The Zimbabwe Mail

But it wasn't enough to offset years of broken promises.

“The election showed people's poor living conditions here,” says ex-councillor Kidwell Mujuru.

Bulawayo has consistently rejected Zanu-PF, fueled by unfulfilled development commitments and economic stagnation. Hlalani Kuhle's existence as a place of unserviced stands serves as a poignant symbol of this neglect.

As a newcomer in the country’s legislature, Sibanda now shoulders the responsibility of effecting change in Cowdray Park.

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While he adopted a more assertive tone during his campaign, he has since taken a less overtly political stance regarding his developmental agenda, being cautious not to raise expectations that could prove too challenging to fulfil.

“It’s not about expectations but the responsibility that comes with being an MP,” Sibanda told The Citizen Bulletin via WhatsApp chat.

“I have no choice but to discharge my duties, which include representation, oversight, and legislation. The strategy has always been working with and for the people.”
Pashor Sibanda, Cowdray Park elected MP

However, Moyo and many Cowdray Park residents ask - how many more elections before authorities fulfil their pledge to transform the area into a livable community? For now, her hope in that past promise remains broken.

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