Bulawayo City Council (BCC) has backtracked on a plan to disband its municipal police and hire a private security company.
This follows backlash from residents and other stakeholders.
This is after media reports revealed that the local authority through a confidential report, had suggested the drastic move as part of strategies to cut the council wage bill.
In a statement, Wednesday, Town Clerk Christopher Dube said Council had not agreed on the proposal to disband municipal police.
โA report outlining various revenue collection strategies was submitted to a Special General Purposes Committee on the 1st of June 2023 and several interventions were proposed including: replacement of City Council Municipal Police at the Revenue Hall with a private security company; replacement of City Council permanent staff in the Revenue Hall with contract workers and; and reopening of Khothama Market. The above proposals were not approved or adopted by Council,โ said Dube.
โCouncil has no plans to disband any of its sections nor convert permanent employees contracts of employment to fixed terms contracts.โ
Dube added that the council would not take such measures without consultations with all the interested parties.