Kwekwe council accused of keeping free toilet filthy to force payment
Story By Staff Reporter
KWEKWE – A Kwekwe resident has given Kwekwe City Council 14 days to fix the toilets at the bus terminus. If not, he will take the council to the High Court.
Etiwel Mutero wrote to Town Clerk Dr Lucia Mkandla. He titled his letter “Urgent Formal Complaint – Final Demand.”
He says the terminus has two public toilets with very different standards. The free toilet is filthy inside and out. Mr Mutero says it has broken doors, no water and no proper sitting chambers. He also claims human waste lies on the floor.
The pay toilet is clean, he says. It has sitting chambers, water and regular maintenance.
Alleged remark by council employee
Mr Mutero says he asked a male council employee why he had to pay. His bus had already paid an entry fee at the gate.
He claims the employee told him that buses “must not bring customers with faeces in the stomach.”
Mr Mutero called the remark rude and degrading. He says it shows council staff see passengers as a nuisance.
Health director’s response
Mr Mutero says he raised the matter with the council’s director of health on 23 October 2026. He claims the director defended the current arrangement.
“A Health Director cannot justify maintaining a dirty toilet as a strategy to force the public to pay,” he wrote.
He also rejects any claim that the council lacks funds. He says the council collects bus entry fees every day. It also earns money from vendors, tuckshops and traders at the terminus. In his view, the council must spend that revenue on maintaining the terminus.
Laws cited
Mr Mutero says the situation breaks several laws.
- Constitution of Zimbabwe: He cites Section 51 (human dignity), Section 56 (equality and non-discrimination), Section 68 (administrative justice) and Section 77 (water and sanitation).
- Urban Councils Act [Chapter 29:15]: He says it requires councils to keep public conveniences clean. He argues it does not allow a council to keep one dirty to push people toward another.
- Public Health Act [Chapter 15:17]: He says a health authority must prevent insanitary conditions. He warns that a dirty toilet where food is sold risks cholera, typhoid and dysentery.
Demands and ultimatum
Mr Mutero wants the council to:
- Build proper sitting chambers in the free toilet, matching the pay toilet.
- Keep it clean, with running water, soap, disinfectant and daily cleaning.
- Discipline the employee and retrain terminus staff on customer care and dignity.
If the council fails to act within 14 days, he wants it to scrap the fee. Both toilets would then be free and open to everyone.
If that fails, he will file an urgent High Court application. He wants the court to declare the practice unconstitutional, degrading, discriminatory and unlawful, with costs against the council. He will also approach the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission and the Ministry of Health.
Mr Mutero says he has photos and video from 23 October 2026. He also says he has witnesses to the remarks.
Kwekwe City Council had not responded to the complaint at the time of publication.
