By Loyd Matare
Mufakose residents have taken their fight against life-threatening sewer bursts to the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission (ZHRC), accusing the City of Harare of gross negligence that has plunged the community into a health crisis.
This comes as Harare continues to grapple with a worsening sanitation crisis, with sewer bursts, water shortages, and uncollected refuse becoming a common feature across most high-density suburbs.
For long, residents in Mufakose say they have endured recurring sewer bursts and uncollected waste, with repeated pleas to the City of Harare falling on deaf ears.
In a complaint filed yesterday, September 15, 2025, the residents cited violations of Sections 73(1), 51, and 48 of the Constitution, which guarantee the right to a safe environment, human dignity, and the right to life.
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They warned that untreated sewage flooding homes and streets has already triggered diarrhoea outbreaks, particularly affecting children and the elderly.
The residents demanded the ZHRC investigate the city council’s failure to attend to the persistent bursts, compel immediate repairs, and secure remedies including free medical care for affected victims, temporary mobile toilets, and compensation for families forced to abandon their homes along Nondo Street due to flooding.
“The Commission must urgently direct the City of Harare to restore safe sanitary conditions before this crisis claims more lives,” reads part of the petition.
Some residents who spoke to AfroGazette painted a grim picture of daily life under sewage siege.
“My tuckshop is right next to a burst sewer line, and customers no longer come near because of the filth and flies. I am losing income every day,” said small business owner Rutendo Dube (41) of Gazaland Shopping Area.
Another resident, Tawanda Mhlanga (34) added:
“We are paying rates every month, yet we live in sewage like animals. Children are now playing near contaminated water.
“This is not just a service delivery failure, it’s a direct attack on our dignity.”
For the elderly, the crisis is unbearable. Mai Chikwanda (68) said:
“Every day I wake up to the smell of raw sewage flowing past my doorstep. Our grandchildren are getting sick from diarrhoea, and no one at the council seems to care. We feel abandoned.”
The Mufakose community now awaits the ZHRC’s response, but for many, the stench of neglect has already become the most potent reminder of a city council they say has failed to deliver on the most basic of services.
