Zanu PF forces church to evict residents association

By Lance Guma
20 February 2007

The Combined Harare Residents Association (CHRA), has been forced to shut its newly opened office in Mbare following threats by Zanu PF officials, directed at the church that owns the building. CHRA opened the office in December last year at Runyararo House run by the Anglican Church. Church officials and the local priest at St Michael’s parish, which also uses the same venue, were threatened with physical violence if CHRA was not evicted.

In an interview with Newsreel, Mfundo Mlilo, an advocacy officer with CHRA, said church officials told them in a meeting that they risked the destruction of their property and victimisation of church leaders if they kept the residents association as tenants. Zanu PF politburo member Tendai Savanhu, a commissioner in the committee running Harare, is said to have led the campaign that resulted in CHRA closing the office last Friday. Savanhu is also thought to harbour ambitions to replace Sekesai Makwavarara as the head of the commission running Harare and the eviction of CHRA from Mbare is thought to have served his agenda well.

The CHRA office was proving very popular with residents and at one time is said to have attracted a crowd of more than a 1000 residents to one of its meetings. Zanu PF members began accusing the association of using the office as a political campaign platform and sought its closure on that basis. CHRA groups together all the residents associations in Harare and is currently leading a campaign to resist the illegal commission that runs Harare in place of an elected Mayor and council.

The association recently began a national campaign to resist the takeover of all urban water management by the Zimbabwe National Water Authority. CHRA say the move is in contravention of the Urban Councils Act and an attempt to usurp the powers of the local authorities which are controlled mainly by the opposition. Chairman Mike Davies has in the past argued that the act does not provide for councils to cede water resources to a third party.