By Own Correspondent

For at least six months, workers at Chirumanzu Rural District Council have endured harsh conditions, working without pay as the council’s financial crisis deepens.

In a recent council meeting, employees’ struggles were laid bare, highlighting how a lack of support and chronic underfunding have taken a heavy toll on staff.

The worsening situation stems from the government’s failure to release the ZWG150.73 million owed to the council under the Devolution Fund. Without these essential funds, employees are left in limbo, unable to meet their basic needs despite faithfully performing their duties.

Financial oppression is further compounded by ZINARA, which disbursed only 11 percent of its allocated road funds, giving the council a mere ZWG1.7 million out of the expected ZWG15.1 million. This shortfall reflects a system in which authorities routinely neglect workers’ livelihoods.

The council’s own revenue collection efforts have achieved only 15 percent of set targets, blamed on economic hardship among residents, resistance from farmers, and delayed payments from clients. Despite this, it is the workers who bear the brunt, trapped without income or relief.

As discontent grows, some voices in the council suggested desperate measures. Ward 24 councillor Tremendous Musara proposed compensating workers with plots of land instead of the wages they are due. The suggestion underscores the depth of the crisis and the failure to honour workers’ rights, forcing staff to accept land as a substitute for their long-overdue salaries.

The ongoing plight of these employees highlights a pervasive pattern of neglect and oppression, with workers shouldering the burden of administrative failure and inadequate state funding.