HARARE residents have bemoaned the absence of an efficient accounting and billing system at the city council amid concern that many ratepayers are being overbilled for services rendered by the local authority.
VERNA NYAMUCHENGWE
In 2019, the City of Harare dumped the South African-made Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) from Quill Associates, citing that it had become expensive at US$75 000, only to replace it with SAGE at a cost of US$300 000.
Quill Associates and the local authority had an acrimonious separation which left Harare’s books in a shambles and, to date, the local authority has been receipting manually, which is a nightmare for accountants.
Harare Residents Trust director Precious Shumba told The NewsHawks that the shortcomings of council have shortchanged residents as inaccurate billing — including for services not provided for, specifically water consumption and refuse collection — has been the order of the day.
“In light of these inaccuracies, the City of Harare’s billing system is shambolic and evidently a source of conflict between the city and the ratepayers who argue that they cannot be charged for services not rendered and for water not actually consumed,’’ said Shumba.
Combined Harare Residents’ Association (CHRA) director Reuben Akili reinforced Shumba’s point, saying the current system is prejudicing ratepayers.
“They have to utilise all the available modules and stop the deliberate manipulation of the system for the personal benefit of corrupt and incompetent officials within the council,’’ said Akili.
Akili said they have in the past written to Parliament and the local authority over the unreliable accounting system.
“The disasters passed on to residents are emanating from employees at the Rowen Martin Building [council’s accounts section] who are failing to interpret the figures, thereby inflating residents,” he said.
The situation has been going on for five years and when the then Auditor-General, Mildred Chiri, picked it in the 2020 report, Parliament made an inquiry into the state of affairs of the local authority’s accounting system and recommended that the Zimbabwe Anti-Corruption Commission probe why the council cancelled Quill’s ERP and opted for the more expensive Sage system.
It is against this background that President Emmerson Mnangagwa has appointed a commission of inquiry led by retired Justice Maphios Cheda, aided by Steven Chakaipa, Norbert Phiri, former People’s Democratic Party president Lucia Gladys Matibenga, Khozani Ncube, while and th3 ministry of Local Government’s permanent secretary John Bhasera will be secretary.
In 2022, the then chairperson for the Finance and Development Committee in the City of Harare, Councillor Costa Mande, as reported by The NewsHawks, admitted that council books were in a shambles because of the absence of an effective ERP.
The absence of a fully integrated ERP system at council means that the financial records, billing system and management reports are in a shambles.
Without proper ERP software, it is difficult to automate and manage core operations for optimal performance.
Mande added that there was no way of plugging revenue leakages in the absence of an ERP.
Auditor-General Chiri revealed in a 2020 report that Harare City Council could have been prejudiced of close to US$190 million owing to a shoddy accounting system.
“According to the council, trade and other payables to the tune of US$105 542 322 were unverifiable. In addition, trade and other payables totalling US$83 712 713 had debit balances and should have been reclassified.
This suggests that the council might have prepaid or overpaid suppliers and has to recover the same,” read the report.
The problems have persisted, with council operating without a functional ERP.
