14/05/2025
STREET VENDORS PLAY HIDE AND SEEK WITH CITY COUNCIL.
*Story by Wadzanai Phyllis Karanda*
Harare- Street vendors are blaming the council for the confusion happening in the Central Business District (CBD) whereby vendors are running around the streets hiding from council.
Vendors are claiming that the council is demanding money every now and then when at times they would not have sold any of their goods, hence they are forced to hide or run away from the council.
"We need a fixed amount per month and a fixed affordable point of sale otherwise we will not stop selling in the streets and corridors", says a lady who is a shoe vendor who did not want to be named.
In an interview with another book vendor, Mr Marisa, he said " council should revert back to the old system of allocating street vendors spares to sell their goods as means of survival."
The street vendors seem to be playing hide and seek with the council who are demanding large sums of money daily or they confistigate their goods and threaten to arrest or remove them from the streets and corridors where they are selling their goods.
One lady Mrs Chidziwo who is a soft drink vendor said, "they should leave us in the streets because that's our only means of survival, rather they should revert back to the old system before covid 19 were we soft drink vendors would pay $25usd monthly and be free to display and sell our drinks."
Council on their X account have called upon vendors to move away from corridors and sell at designated places or face the wrath of the law.
