via Gweru City Council in the red | The Source November 25, 2013
Gweru City Council, which runs one of the four largest municipalities in the country, has incurred an $8 million deficit in the just ended financial year, mainly due to a government edict to cancel ratepayer debt, an official said on Monday.
The local authority’s director of finance Edgar Mwedzi said council managed to collect only $26 million in revenue from its targeted $34 million.
He said the deficit was largely due the cancellation of bad debts, coupled with non-payment of rates and service charges by households and businesses.
“We incurred a deficit of about $8 million. We failed to reach the revenue target we set at the beginning of the year mainly due to cancellation of bad debts. The other challenge we also encountered is that our ratepayers have continued to default,” he said.
Gweru City Council is owed $13 million by industry and commerce dating back to 2009 when the country introduced the multi-currency regime.
However the local authority is considering slashing the debt by half.
Council has also proposed an unchanged budget for 2014.
COMMENTS
You are all in good company. Don’t worry. Thewhole country is in the red. Even flamboyant self anointed zanu so called tycoons are technically bankrupt insolvent in massive debt. The zim stock exchange is full of penny share failures. In 1980 it was Africa’s 2nd biggest. 34 years later fallen to 14th.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
COMPLIMENTS OF ZANUPF! I GIVE THEM COMPLEMENTS!!!!
“Council has also proposed an unchanged budget for 2014.”
After running an $8 Million deficit? That would mean that next year they would have an even greater deficit! Does anyone in this country have even a basic grasp of economics or how to prepare and manage a budget?
Even if they had some idea there is no political will to introduce good governance measures.We must point out the residents are not responsible for these debts that are being run up and will not be made to pay them..councils and govt must cut the cloth to fit the suit.
Plz City Council regai kuita tsika yokushandisa ZRP kana muchitevera maliecence. Munonoti vanhu vanoiwanepi mari yokutanga vabhadhara fine kuZRP. Ndapota mari zhinji irikuperera mukudiza mapurisa ko imi hamuchina mapurisa here? Vanhu havachina mari plz