Gweru council target informal traders
CATHERINE MASOCHA
In a disturbing crackdown on Gweru’s informal traders, the city’s municipal authorities have been accused of unlawfully confiscating goods from vendors operating in the in the city’s central business district (CBD).
Investigations reveal that these actions, which lack legal backing , are driven by outdated by-laws and have sparked outdated allegations of corruption within the council’s municipal police.
The 1977 by-laws,prescribe penalties for operating in undesignated areas but do not authorise the seizure of goods.
Despite this legal vacuum, the council’s municipal police routinely confiscate vendors’ wares, demanding fines of up to US$35 for their return.
Many traders claim that not all confiscated goods are returned, fuelling suspicions of corruption.
Evidence gathered by Business Times working with support from Information for Development Trust uncovers practices of bribery, with some traders paying municipal police officers to prevent confiscations or recover goods at a lower cost.
Information for Development Trust is a non-profit organisation supporting investigative reporting focusing on communities.
Interviews with sources inside the municipal police exposed the prevalence of corruption.
One municipal police officer admitted: “Corruption has become our daily bread. Some traders even pay us to overlook their illegal operations, while others bribe us during confiscations”.
Another source said the real corruption takes place in the CBD when the goods are being confiscated.
“Some traders give us money so their confiscated wares are not taken to the city council. So instead of paying us US$35, traders pay us a negotiated amount, which is far less than the municipal fine.”
The municipal officers refused to shed much light on how they share the spoils.
“We cannot be seen knocking off and having lots of bananas or potatoes after the confiscations. That would make people raise eyebrows, which is why we surrender them all to the local authority.”
However, a vendor who claimed anonymity says some of the municipal police officers grab what they want as they are conducting the confiscations.
“They walk around in groups of three to five. When they raid us at times they choose what they want and put the items aside. The chosen items are left behind with one officer who delivers them to trusted allies a bit far from where the confiscations were conducted. The rest are taken to the office as evidence of carrying out their duties.”
Witness accounts revealed that confiscated goods are transported to the council’s lost-and-found room before being recorded and sometimes discarded at a dumpsite.
However, allegations of theft and misappropriation remain rife, with traders like Beauty Chigogo complaining, “Even if you pay the fine, not all your goods are returned. We don’t know where they go missing — either in the municipal vehicle or at the council offices”.
Gweru City Council spokesperson Vimbai Chingwaramuse denies these claims, insisting that perishable goods are disposed of at the dumpsite and non-perishable items held temporarily.
She said non-perishable items are held for a limited period to allow owners to pay their fines and collect them.
Yet, the council has refused to provide full documentation of the confiscation process, raising further concerns about transparency.
“The documents are for official use. They contain people’s names and signatures, so they cannot be shared,” Chingwaramuse said.
Refusal to share this documentation by Gweru City Council prompted this reporter to write an information request letter.
The Gweru acting town clerk Livingstone Churu authorised that this documentation be availed to this reporter but authorities within the Gweru Municipal Police kept on tossing and turning this reporter to come back at a later date, saying the office with the information was locked since the bearer had taken some time off duty.
As part of the investigation, this reporter posed as an informal trader and observed the disposal process together with other informal traders who were hoping to get their confiscated goods back
All perishables were counted and documented by an official from the municipal health department working with the municipal police before being crushed by a refuse compactor which then drove off to the dumpsite.
Currently, Gweru City Council is not giving back any confiscated perishables to the traders so they are taken to the dumpsite, but in the recent past the local authority would make them pay fines and retrieve their goods.
The unclaimed confiscated goods would be taken to the dumpsite in a municipal police Nissan Navara vehicle.
A visit at the dumpsite by this reporter however revealed that vegetables and tomatoes were the most commonly discarded items of the confiscated goods which include fruits, clothing and small electric appliances. While local authority officials claim that some traders retrieve their confiscated goods after paying fines, informal traders allege that some wares are misappropriated by council workers.
Informal trading amid economic decline
Gweru, like many urban centres in Zimbabwe, has seen a surge in informal trading due to high unemployment and a struggling economy.
With over 2 000 informal traders in the city, according to the Zimbabwe Chamber of Informal Economy Associations 2023 database update survey—three-quarters of them women—the lack of adequate market spaces has forced many to operate in undesignated areas.
However, the figure could be higher in Zimbabwe’s fourth largest city, whose population is over 158 200 people.
The council’s failure to provide sufficient infrastructure, such as the dilapidated Mtapa market, leaves traders with no choice but to return to the streets, sparking on-going conflicts with municipal police.
Vendors like Sekai Musvuugwa highlight the challenges: “We operate illegally because we have no alternative. But the fines are too high, and the harassment is relentless.
“The US$35 fine demanded by the council is unreasonable. Some of us sell simple items like maputi and chips, and we can’t afford to pay such fees and restock. We know we are operating illegally, but Gweru City Council should not demand such exorbitant fines”.
Another vendor, Vincent Manene said he once paid a fine of US$30 to get his goods back.
“There is a book where they keep their records when you collect your confiscated goods but, you just hand them your receipt and they do the recording. You don`t sign anything.”
He accused the municipal workers of soliciting bribes to return the goods.
“Sometimes we pay municipal police to get our goods back as they will be conducting the confiscations. They can make you pay an additional US$5 to get the goods back,” Manene said.
Legal violations and calls for reform
The confiscation of goods violates vendors’ constitutional rights, including Section 64, which guarantees the right to trade, and Section 24(2)(b), which calls for the removal of barriers to economic activity.
Legal experts like Linah Nyamukachi stress that relying on archaic colonial-era laws is oppressive and contradicts the constitutional protections afforded to informal traders.
“Council cannot be seen relying on archaic law. Most of these archaic laws are oppressive and they tremble upon constitutional provisions. The council has to work towards having revised laws,” Nyamukachi said.
She pointed out the harassment and abuse female informal traders endure during running battles with municipal police.
“In as much as they might be on places they are not supposed to sell their wares, their right to be treated with dignity remains,” Nyamukachi said.
“Their rights enshrined in the constitution must be respected. Municipal police must be educated that wherever they are carrying out their mandate, they must respect the dignity of female vendors.”
She, however, said section 71(3)(b)(i) of the constitution legalises imposition of confiscations by municipal police.
The section further reads: “The deprivation is necessary for any of the following reasons, (i) in the interests of defence, public safety, public order, public morality, public health or town and country planning”.
Gweru City Council has made promises to review these out-dated by-laws, but progress has been slow.
Former Gweru mayor Josiah Makombe confirmed the existence of a 2020 resolution that authorised the confiscation of goods from informal traders operating in undesignated areas.
However, current council officials deny the resolution’s existence, creating a cloud of uncertainty.
“We are reviewing by-laws so that they align with current realities and accommodate informal traders,” Makombe said at the time.
“Some of these laws are out-dated and were crafted during the colonial period and no longer speak to the reality on the ground.
“There is need for adjustment so that we co-exist (council and informal traders) and I promise you that these running battles between vendors and council should end.”
Speaking recently to Business Times, Makombe reiterated that the resolution was implemented as a means of enforcing existing measures.
“In 2020 or 2021, we passed a resolution allowing Gweru City Council municipal police to confiscate the wares of informal traders operating from undesignated spaces. This formalised what was already happening,” he explained.
Two former councillors have corroborated Makombe’s statement.
However, current Gweru City Council officials deny knowledge of the resolution, stalling efforts to locate and verify it.
Chingwaramuse says: “There is no any resolution to that”.
The municipal acting Chamber Secretary, Tapiwa Marerwa distanced himself from the issue, stating, “I was not yet in office when that resolution was made”.
Another legal practitioner with the Zimbabwe Women Lawyers Association (ZWLA), Abigail Matsvayi said local authorities have a mandate to come up with by-laws that stimulate economic opportunities.
“Council must have in place by-laws and regulations that encourage the economic empowerment for both men and women in a fair manner,” Matsvayi said.
Informal traders in Gweru call for reform
Thirty-year-old Nhamoinesu Jijita, a father who turned to street trading after failing to secure formal employment, described the relentless challenges he faces.
“I want to survive, but the authorities make it impossible. How am I supposed to pay rent, feed, and clothe my family when my goods are being taken away?”
However, many traders in Gweru endure routine harassment from municipal police.
Dyson Musharukwa, another street vendor, highlighted the exhausting cycle of evasion: “We just run when the municipal police come, but the hide-and-seek game is exhausting. We return to the streets because we have no choice”.
A call for policy reform
This ongoing conflict underscores the urgent need for policy reform to address the unlawful confiscation of goods and create a framework that supports the informal sector.
David Chikore, executive director of the Gweru United Progressive Residents and Ratepayers Development Association, condemned the abuse of informal traders.
“At a policy level, we must support the informal sector, not suppress it. The council’s actions are tantamount to criminalising poverty. Informal traders are not criminals — they are simply trying to survive,” he said.
“We need to revisit how we engage with them and create spaces where they can operate without blocking pavements or enduring daily harassment.”
Chikore called for dedicated trading zones in Gweru, similar to Bulawayo’s designated streets for informal traders.
“We used to have a street reserved for clothing vendors. A similar arrangement should be reintroduced. The council must find a way for informal traders and retail outlets to coexist”.
Shepherd Museve, president of the Zimbabwe Chamber of Informal Economy Associations (ZCIEA), echoed these sentiments.
“The informal sector is growing rapidly, and there will never be enough markets for all traders. Why not allow them to work freely and collect reasonable fees instead of harassing them?”
Despite the harassment, Museve noted the difficulty in substantiating reports of abuse due to insufficient evidence.
“As an organisation, we struggle to pursue these cases without clear evidence, as it would appear we are accusing law enforcement of failing in their mandate,” he said.
The need for immediate action
Midlands Zimbabwe Republic Police spokesperson, Inspector Emmanuel Mahoko, stated that the police have not received reports of confiscated goods but urged informal traders to formalise their operations.
He also called on Gweru City Council to follow due process when arresting traders or seizing goods.
