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Cde Richard Moyo

Leonard Ncube Victoria Falls Reporter
PREPARATIONS for the Zanu-PF Annual National People’s Conference set for December in Victoria Falls are intensifying but the revolutionary party is concerned whether the host town will be able to provide enough water for over 6,000 delegates.

Victoria Falls draws its water from the Zambezi River which usually has depleted supplies this time of the year until the next rainy season as the water level at the pump will be low.

This year the situation could be worse owing to very low water levels in the river, a situation that has also affected the country’s power generation capacity at Kariba.

The conference, which was last held in the resort town in 2002, will be held during the first week of December at the Elephant Hills Resort Grounds and providing water for 6,000 visitors is something the authorities are grappling with.

The Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa) is responsible for the provision of raw water to the town and when preparations for the conference began, the local authority appealed to the party for help in engaging the authority on the matter.

Zanu-PF Matabeleland North provincial chairman Cde Richard Moyo said they had contacted the ministers responsible for the two entities, the Minister of Local Government, Public Works and National Housing, Cde Saviour Kasukuwere who oversees the operations of local authorities and the Minister of Environment, Water and Climate Cde Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri under whose portfolio Zinwa falls.

“Preparations are going on well as we’ve secured accommodation for delegates. What we’re doing this week is try and solve the water issue,” said Cde Moyo.

“The council has to provide water for the conference and what we’ve done is to implore the two respective ministers — Cde Saviour Kasukuwere and Cde Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri — to engage each other on the issue of Zinwa and Victoria Falls Municipality so that we’ve enough water for the period of the conference.”

Cde Moyo said the party’s Provincial Executive Committee met last weekend and resolved that the next Provincial Coordinating Committee (PCC) will be held in Victoria Falls as a way of cementing the preparations.

“The PCC will be held in Victoria Falls this month to deliberate on everything that has happened so far and what needs to be done going forward. We’re going to invite the national office for the PCC on a date that will be decided,” he said.

Today heads of different organising committees from the party’s national office will visit Victoria Falls to meet the local organising committee and service providers to start preparing for the fundraising dinner, Cde Moyo said.

He said the finance committee had already drafted letters for donations which will soon be dispatched to companies.

Cde Kasukuwere, who is also the national commissar, recently said the party requires about $3 million for the conference, the money which he said would be raised through donations.

Provinces are expected to raise $100,000 each.