Concern over proposed fire and ambulance levy in Bulawayo

Bulawayo residents have raised concern over the proposed monthly fire and ambulance levy saying they are already struggling to offset council arrears which may be worsened by additional bills.

The local authority is proposing that the levy be paid as insurance as the fire and ambulance services department is facing a lot of challenges.

Speaking during budget presentations, councillors said the levy will help improve fire and ambulance services which of late have been unreliable.

Bulawayo Deputy Mayor Councillor Mlandu Ncube said the levy will be solely used to improve services.

“Fire and ambulance services are a priority in terms of our services and council as they are closely connected to saving lives. We are proposing this levy which will be paid monthly to improve the services as we are currently struggling to keep up with demand. This levy will not be used for anything else except ensuring that our residents have access to reliable and quality service provision from this crucial department,” said Ncube.

According to the department’s 2020 annual report, the COVID-19 induced lockdown had seen the department facing a number of challenges which have negatively affected operations, among them failure to procure requisite equipment.

In previous years, the local authority has been a major beneficiary of the Operation Florian initiative which saw council getting fire equipment from the United Kingdom firefighting team. So lucrative was the partnership that the department could also afford donating the received equipment to neighbouring fire departments.

However, with the lockdown, the initiative was put on hold and according to records, the fire and ambulance department only got a television set, face masks and pre mixed tea from well-wishers the whole of last year.

So far the department only has one water carrier to service the entire city and a number of ambulances are down which may put the lives of members of the public at risk in cases of emergency.

Anna Khumalo an elderly resident from Magwegwe said the idea was noble but a majority of residents may not be able to pay the levy as council had already indicated that rates will go up by more than 200%.

“We wish to see our council improving service delivery but this proposed levy will be a burden for us especially the elderly who are struggling to keep up with rate arrears. I think council should consider using some of the revenue to address challenges in the fire and ambulance department as this proposed levy will leave thousands of us accumulating interests after failing to pay monthly,” she said.

Thobekile Msipa from Cowdray Park said as long as the levy will be minimal, residents could consider paying so that they access improved services.

“For us in Cowdray Park issues to do with service delivery are crucial because for the longest time we have lagged behind. Our roads are so bad an ambulance may struggle to get here on time hence we need to support council in every possible way so that we benefit. I think the levy should not be more than US$1 and that way we can sacrifice so that we benefit,” said Msipa.

For Confidence Sibanda from Waterford which is part of Ward 4, with the highest prevalence of fire incidents in Bulawayo, the levy should not abused if council decides to implement it.

“In the past we had other levies that we paid and to date nothing has been done to improve service delivery for example the water levy. Yes we know the department needs help but the additional cost will cripple many of us financially as we can hardly bear with the economic challenges,” said Sibanda.

Residents noted that they were concerned because in the past, the city council proposed levies failed to account for these.