Residents fret over over-priced stands
LUPANE residents have petitioned the local board, protesting against the high cost of medium-density housing stands which range from US$6 000 to US$12 000, saying they are beyond the reach of the majority.
In the petition, the Lupane Residents and Ratepayers Development Trust (LRRA) through its secretary-general Thulani Moyo said they had been advised that the stands went on sale on Tuesday at US$15 per square metre.
“We have been notified that the stands shall be sold at US$15 per square metre to anyone on a first come first serve basis and we note that the sale price is pegged at US$15 which translates to between US$6 000 and US$12 000 per stand which is far beyond the financial capacity of ordinary residents of Lupane whose average monthly income is around $4 000 local currency equal to around US$35,” the petition read.
“The stands are to be sold to anyone disregarding order in the waiting list. The stands are yet to be serviced and the LLB (Lupane Local Board) is selling just some virgin land. There is no evidence or a credible evaluation of the said stands to justify the exorbitant value of US$15 per square metre.”
The residents demanded that the local authority should not sale stands until sanity prevailed in the pricing regime.
“We thus petition your office as the chairperson and the other committees to stop the proposed sale of stands pending full servicing, to properly consult residents and ratepayers of Lupane Local Board area including leadership on the best way forward, to show us the standard you used to evaluate the stands and the credentials of the evaluator, to assure us that the workers of the LLB and their immediate relatives will not improperly benefit from the said stands, to provide proper evaluation of the stands taking into consideration the geographical location and the intended beneficiaries capacity to pay,” read the petition.
LRRA indicated that should their petition not be heeded, they would take the matter to the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Local Government.
The residents also petitioned Matabeleland North Provincial Affairs minister Richard Moyo, local legislators Mbongeni Dube and Martin Khumalo, Chief Mabikwa and Lupane district development co-ordinator Ennet Sithole expressing their reservations over the sale of stands at such exorbitant prices.
They appealed for the leaders' intervention, indicating that they strongly believe the move was meant to exclude the locals from buying the stands.
“We strongly believe this is a way of excluding locals from building houses in their birth place. Obviously, no single individual in Lupane can raise that outrageous amount in a short space of two weeks as per the authority’s expectation, given the challenging economic environment affecting everyone,” read the petition to Moyo.
“We implore your office to use your influence or authority to stop the proposed sale of stands. We trust you shall be of great assistance to the longsuffering residents of Lupane.”
They also asked the legislators, the chief and the DCC to assist in stopping the transactions.
Mabikwa on Tuesday confirmed receiving the petition from LRRA but said he was yet to engage the LLB to establish their side of the story.
“I saw the petition which was written to me, the LLB, area MP and minister and on the issue of stands if they are saying the pricing is too high I 100% agree with them that this will disadvantage the locals from buying the stands considering the economic situation and the current effects of COVID-19 where people are not able to raise such amounts of money,” he said.
“I have heard the residents’ side of the story and I intend to meet the LLB so that I hear their side and after that I will be able to comment more on this."
LLB town secretary Charlton Moyo also acknowledged receipt of the petition but indicated that the prices of stands were based on servicing costs.
“The amount per square metre of a mediumdensity stand is based on required servicing costs. For more information you may visit the office for clarity,” Moyo wrote to the residents.