Vusa Dube and Bongani Ndlovu, Zimpapers Reporters
A bitter dispute has erupted at Bulawayo City Hall, prompting the Government to intervene and set the record straight after the Mayor, Councillor David Coltart, and his deputy, Councillor Edwin Ndlovu, offered starkly different accounts of what transpired during a recent chaotic council meeting that controversially resolved to extend Town Clerk Mr Christopher Dube’s contract to 2030.
Tensions spilled into the public domain after reports claimed councillors had “unanimously” agreed to grant Mr Dube a one-year extension to 2026 and a further four-year term to 2030, and that Mr Coltart walked out in protest. The Mayor denies that narrative, insisting no such vote took place while he was in the chamber and that the meeting collapsed into disorder long before any formal decision could be made.
The Ministry of Local Government and Public Works has clarified that the only information it has regarding the Town Clerk’s contract is the one-year extension to November 2026.
The duelling Press releases over what did or did not happen in a chaotic council meeting are not just about the contract of one official; they are a cry for help from a system desperately in need of new blood, fresh thinking, and a decisive break from the politics of the past.
At the heart of the dispute is town clerk Christopher Dube. The core question, however, is not whether his contract should be extended by one year or five. The real issue is why a modern city, facing immense challenges, is expending all its political capital on extending the tenure of a senior bureaucrat rather than on a visionary plan for the future.
Mayor Coltart paints a picture of “mayhem, slanderous comments, threats and shouting,” rendering the meeting unlawful. Deputy Mayor Ndlovu counters with a tale of a “vibrant but orderly” debate that proceeded legally after the mayor’s departure. They cannot both be right. This fundamental breakdown in trust at the highest level of city leadership is paralysing. How can a city move forward when its leaders cannot even agree on the basic facts of a meeting?
This chaos is a gift to the status quo. While councillors are busy arguing over procedural technicalities and trading accusations, the pressing issues facing Bulawayo — failing infrastructure, water shortages, economic stagnation — are put on hold. The focus is inward, on personal allegiances and political power plays, rather than outward, on service delivery and innovation.
The specific argument over Statutory Instrument 197/2024 is a case in point. The call for legal clarity before action is the hallmark of prudent management. It seeks to avoid future litigation and set a clean precedent. The dismissal of this, in favour of simply exercising council power, reflects a more impulsive, politically-driven approach. This clash between cautious procedure and bullish assertion is at the core of the city’s stagnation.
But let’s be clear: this is not just about two men disagreeing. It is about a system that prioritises job security for the connected over competitive hiring for the competent. By fighting to lock in a town clerk until 2030 without a transparent, competitive process, the council is signalling that the future of Bulawayo’s administration is not open to new talent, new ideas, or a new direction.
What Bulawayo needs is not a five-year extension of the old guard, but a five-year plan infused with innovation. We need leaders who are debating the merits of smart water meters, not the minutiae of retirement ages. We need a council that is obsessed with attracting tech startups and manufacturing hubs, not with securing the positions of incumbent managers.
The bitter dispute at City Hall is a powerful argument for term limits, for robust independent oversight, and for a recruitment process that looks beyond the usual suspects.
The energy spent on this conflict should have been channelled into a city-wide conversation about what kind of Bulawayo we want to build for the next generation.
The people of Bulawayo deserve a local Government that is focused on them, not on itself. It is time to demand that our councillors stop their bickering, look beyond the council chamber walls, and remember who they serve.
The future of our city will not be found in extending the contracts of the past, but in having the courage to hire for the challenges of tomorrow.
It is time for new blood.
