Land barons reportedly linked to Zanu PF have cast a deaf ear on calls to improve service delivery by residents in the sprawling suburb of Victoria Ranch.
Water supply has been erratic, illegal dumping of refuse is now rampant due to lack of refuse collection, whilst roads are still substandard.
Fears of water-borne diseases are high as many residents fetch water from unprotected sources due to scarcity of safe water.
The ever-growing high density suburb has no tarred roads and this has forced many public transport operators to desert the route.
Land barons have remained quiet and continue to play hide and seek with residents who are demanding value for their money.
Speaking to NewZimbabwe.com, Victoria Ranch Residents Association spokesperson, Dereck Chikuni, said they are heavily disappointed by the continuous lack of progress when it comes to service delivery.
"The problem which we are facing is that, it's difficult to have both land developers and the two councils (rural and urban) on the same table, so they end up pointing fingers at each other over the issue of poor service.
"Literally, there is nothing new to talk about because water is still scarce, sewerage system is not in place and the roads are in a bad state," Chikuni said.
The area falls under Masvingo Rural District Council, which hasn't been actively involved in service delivery since the land technically belongs to land barons.
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One of the Victoria Ranch land developers, Wellington Mawende, however, said they are working to improve service in the area despite their failure to do so in previous years.
"We are currently working on a sewerage system and then we will finish off with roads. Problem has been funds, but we are working to improve service," said Mawende.
Masvingo City Council has reportedly shown interest in incorporating the suburb, but efforts have hit a snag.
The city is implementing the Mucheke Trunk Sewer project that is expected to serve Victoria Ranch which, for almost a decade, has been operating without a sewer reticulation system.
Some of the land barons include, Goddart Dunira who is nephew to Zanu PF's central committee member, Josiah Hungwe, Ephraim Gwanongodza, a Zanu PF legislator and Wellington Mawende, who is Masvingo City deputy Mayor and is reportedly eyeing Masvingo Urban constituency under the ruling party ticket.
