Harare, (New Ziana) – Harare residents have demanded that new levies that the Harare City Council has proposed be put on ice to ease their tax burden.
The local authority recently announced proposals to introduce levies forwater infrastructure, street lighting and ambulance services
In a joint statement on Monday, the Combined Harare Residents Association (CHRA) and the Zimbabwe Taxpayers’ Platform (ZITAP) expressed concern at the introduction of the levies soon after the Commission of Inquiry that President Emmerson Mnangagwa appointed to investigate the affairs of the capital city revealed widespread financial abuse by the council executives.
These include high salaries for the local authority’s executives and the surrendering of key revenue streams and mandates to private companies.
“The levies introduce double taxation as we believe revenue is being collected which could pay for the purported expenditure. Particularly, we note that revenue being collected for water rates is not being ring fenced for the service, resulting in it being open to abuse or diversion to non-priority expenditure,” read the statement signed by the CHRA chairperson, David Pasipanodya and his ZITAP counterpart, Itai Zimunya.
CHRA and ZITAP said other sources of funding exist that could be used for infrastructure development, in particular Intergovernmental Fiscal Transfers (IGFTs) commonly known as devolution funds.
However, in the 2024 fiscal year, as of November last year, a meagre ZIG 1.218 million equivalent to just 1.91 percent of the total allocation of devolution funds, was disbursed to the local authority in devolution funds.
The residents’ bodies said the new tax layer adds to the burden as Zimbabweans are grappling with one of the most burdensome tax regimes on the African continent, with the third highest income tax after South Africa and Senegal at 41.2 percent.
Since 2018, the country has witnessed the introduction of the Intermediated Money Transfer Tax (IMTT), the sugar tax, fees on repatriation of deceased persons, and the recently proposed tax on airtime.
Despite the Minister of Finance, Economic Planning and Development, Professor Mthuli Ncube announcing plans to cut the country’s taxes and regulatory fees for businesses within six months, the residents noted that the tax burden on ordinary citizens continues to mount at different tiers of government.
CHRA and ZITAP demanded that the City of Harare stop the introduction of the proposed levies and prioritise expenditure from its current revenue streams, and improve collection efficiency on existing levies, rates and tariffs.
New Ziana
