Gweru (New Ziana) –The Gweru municipality will on Friday confer the Freedom of the City status to President Emmerson Mnangagwa and will also name its Main Street after him.

The status would be conferred at a ceremony to be held at the Gweru Civic Centre, after which the President would unveil a plaque along Main Street, which would officially be changed to Emmerson Mnangagwa Street.

Gweru City Council spokesperson Vimbai Chingwaramusee said the status was the highest civic honour that individuals got for playing a role towards the development of the city.

She said the city fathers had decided to give the honour to President Mnangagwa in recognition of the assistance that he continues to give to the Midlands capital.

“We had water challenges and he chipped in by helping us procure pumps,” she said.

“We also had challenges with the dedication to duty of some employees but through the introduction of performance-based contracts, mayors and Town Clerks are on the spotlight in terms of service delivery.”

Chingwaramusee said under the Second Republic, the Gweru City Council had accessed devolution funds which it used to purchase trucks and water reticulation equipment.

She said it was only befitting for the city, which is the capital of the Midlands province, to honour President Mnangagwa who also hails from the province.

The decision to honour the President was through a council resolution made in December last year.

New Ziana