The Sunday News
Munyaradzi Musiiwa, Midlands Correspondent
INFRASTRUCTURE at Gokwe Town, including District Administrator’s office, the new court building, police station and civil servants residence risk collapsing due to a gully which has grown towards the town centre because of the incessant rains.
The gully which developed between Hospital Road and Nemangwe Road has now completely destroyed the road and is cutting underneath the court building.
Motorists have since abandoned Hospital Road in a bid to avoid the gully that is threatening both people and animals that freely roam the town.
Minister of State for Midlands Provincial Affairs Jason Machaya said the gully was growing towards some of the infrastructure because of the loose soils and the continuous rains.
Minister Machaya said initially an estimated $500 000 was needed to reclaim the gullies and prevent them from destroying infrastructure at Gokwe Town but the figure has since risen to more than $1 million.
“The situation at Gokwe Town really needs urgent attention because the gully which started developing in 2012 is now threatening infrastructure. The court is now under threat and the road has been completely destroyed. The dire situation had been worsened by incessant rains and the loose soils of Gokwe. We once requested for about $500 000 from Zinara for the gully reclamation but it looks like we now require more than a million,” he said.
Minister Machaya said most roads in Gokwe were in a bad shape and he has since approached Zinara and the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructural development to look into the matter.
Minister Machaya said the road which connects Gokwe North and South districts was now impassable after the rains destroyed part of the bridge at the river bordering the two districts.
The main road which connects Gokwe South and North Districts has been destroyed by rains as well. The bridge which is at the border is about to collapse. We have 20 other small bridges in the two districts that have been swept away by the rains,” he said.
@Munya_Musiiwa
