By Advent Shoko
BULAWAYO — Bulawayo Mayor David Coltart has defended the proposed expansion of municipal police powers after former Tourism Minister Walter Mzembi and trade unionist Raymond Majongwe raised concerns about giving local authority officers powers to arrest offenders.
The debate follows Cabinet’s approval of the Municipal Police and Courts Bill, 2026, which seeks to strengthen the legal framework governing municipal policing and create dedicated municipal courts to deal with by-law offences, minor offences and traffic violations.
But the proposal has quickly become controversial, with supporters arguing that councils need stronger powers to enforce their own laws, while critics fear that expanding arrest powers could expose residents, vendors and motorists to harassment and abuse.
At the centre of the dispute is a basic question: should municipal police have greater enforcement powers, and what safeguards should stand between those powers and the public?
What Cabinet agreed on
Cabinet approved the Municipal Police and Courts Bill on Tuesday, with Justice, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi presenting it on behalf of the Cabinet Committee on Legislation.
According to the post-Cabinet briefing, the Bill is intended to strengthen local authorities’ ability to enforce regulations within their jurisdictions and establish dedicated, professional municipal police services.
The proposed municipal police would focus on community safety, by-law enforcement, traffic management and local crime prevention.
The Bill also provides for municipal courts whose jurisdiction would include municipal by-laws, minor offences and traffic violations, as well as the appointment of municipal magistrates.
Importantly, Cabinet has approved the Bill as proposed legislation. It is not yet a law giving municipal police immediate arresting powers.
Those powers would take effect only if the legislative process is completed and the Bill becomes law. The Herald similarly reported that municipal police could be granted powers to apprehend offenders under the proposed legislation.
Coltart welcomes the move
Coltart initially welcomed Cabinet’s decision, arguing that municipalities cannot effectively enforce their own by-laws without stronger legal tools.
The Bulawayo mayor said the legislation could help councils tackle problems affecting the cleanliness, order and management of cities.
“I commend the Minister of Local Government the Hon. Daniel Garwe for securing Cabinet approval for the proposed Municipal Police and Courts Bill.
“This Bill when it becomes law will greatly enhance the City of Bulawayo Municipal Police’s ability to enforce our bye laws which in turn will lead to a cleaner, healthier and more orderly City.”
Coltart’s position is that stronger municipal enforcement is not necessarily a move to replace the Zimbabwe Republic Police, but rather to give local authorities the ability to deal with matters that fall directly within their responsibilities.
That argument has won some support, particularly from those who believe the national police should not be required to deal with every parking offence, illegal vending case or breach of a local authority by-law.
Mzembi: Police should retain arresting powers
Mzembi, however, strongly disagreed with the direction being taken.
The former minister argued that arrest powers should remain with the Zimbabwe Republic Police, warning that transferring them to municipal structures could increase harassment of ordinary people.
“The @PoliceZimbabwe should retain its arresting powers and discharge these efficiently, subcontracting them to Municipal Councils will just increase the harassment of ordinary offenders, vendors, motorists, street kids etc.
“Emphasis should be on making the Economy work and engaging potential offenders in productive streams of the Economy. Making the Economy inclusive and productive.
“There is hell already with Parking Attendants, if you are a VVIP you may not know it as you prescribe new laws; I can’t imagine those folks as an extension of arresting powers!”
Mzembi’s concern goes beyond the technical question of municipal enforcement. It touches on Zimbabwe’s wider struggle with informal economic activity, street vending, unemployment and complaints about the conduct of enforcement officers.
Majongwe was even more blunt in his criticism.
Majongwe calls it “a disaster in the making”
“This development has made me very uncomfortable. Someone wants chaos to reign in this nation. This is a disaster in the making. After looking at the Metropolitan Police Offenses Code haa kuchafiwa.”
His comments reflect fears that the proposed system could create another layer of law enforcement without sufficiently strong mechanisms to prevent abuse.
That concern has also been raised by members of the public who supported Mzembi’s argument.
One commentator said:
“Your point is very clear. Municipality police are not selected on merit, but political partisanship. Now when they get powers it’s likely to be corruptly used. In Zimbabwe nothing works without Zanu PF oil machines.”
Coltart pushes back
Coltart later responded directly to Mzembi, while maintaining his original support for the Bill.
He acknowledged concerns about harassment but argued that councils urgently need the ability to enforce their own laws.
“I respectfully disagree with you @waltermzembi – although I too don’t like the harassment of innocent residents, Municipalities desperately need to be able to enforce their own by laws which isn’t happening at present.
“Part and parcel of respecting the rule of law is ensuring that innocent people aren’t harassed and so it is important that any new law has provisions which deter Municipal Police from exceeding or abusing their authority.”
That is perhaps the most important qualification in Coltart’s argument.
His support is not for unchecked municipal power. Rather, he says the legislation should give councils enforcement powers while simultaneously creating safeguards against officers exceeding their authority.
Zimbabwe lawyer says it could work — with safeguards
Taka Mupfiga, a Zimbabwean lawyer based in Canada, offered a middle position.
He argued that municipal policing is not unusual internationally and that the real question is whether Zimbabwe can create a system with proper training, oversight and accountability.
“Dr. Mzembi, my view is that many major cities across the world, including in neighbouring South Africa, have municipal police services with limited arresting powers that complement, not replace the national police, all within the confines of the law and the Constitution. Maybe it could work for Zimbabwe as well, if implemented properly.
“The issue is therefore not necessarily the powers themselves, but training, oversight and accountability.”
Mupfiga said local authorities would need to invest in training officers in public order management, conflict de-escalation and professional engagement with residents.
But he also acknowledged the concerns surrounding some municipal enforcement operations.
“I, however, hear your legitimate concern that some municipal police and parking officials have displayed overreach, heavy-handedness and conduct that at times borders on extortion. That culture must be decisively addressed if public confidence is to be restored.”
The vendor problem is at the heart of the debate
The argument is particularly sensitive because municipal police already occupy a controversial place in Zimbabwe’s urban economy.
For years, Harare, Bulawayo and other local authorities have struggled to control informal trading in city centres as more Zimbabweans turn to vending and other forms of informal work.
Councils have attempted to move vendors into designated trading areas, citing congestion, sanitation, public safety and the need to protect formal businesses.
But many vendors have resisted relocation, arguing that designated sites are often too far from customers.
The result has been a familiar cycle: municipal officers conduct enforcement operations, vendors flee or lose their goods, and many return to the streets the following day.
The proposed Bill therefore arrives in an environment where relations between municipal authorities and some sections of the informal economy are already tense.
For critics such as Mzembi and Majongwe, giving municipal police additional powers could make those confrontations more serious.
For Coltart and other supporters, however, failing to give municipalities effective enforcement powers leaves councils unable to properly manage the cities they are legally responsible for.
A new layer of enforcement — or better local government?
The Bill is ultimately about more than arrests.
It proposes a broader municipal justice system involving dedicated police services and municipal courts, with the stated aim of improving by-law enforcement, service delivery, public safety and environmental management while supporting constitutional devolution.
That could change how Zimbabwe’s cities deal with everything from illegal trading and traffic violations to breaches of municipal regulations.
But the controversy surrounding the proposal shows that giving councils more power will only solve part of the problem.
The harder question will be how those powers are controlled.
Who supervises municipal police officers? What happens when an officer abuses his or her authority? What complaints mechanism will residents have? How will officers be trained? And how will councils prevent enforcement from becoming another avenue for bribery, intimidation or selective treatment?
Those questions are likely to become increasingly important as the Bill moves through the legislative process.
For now, Coltart and his critics agree on at least one thing: Zimbabwe’s cities need better enforcement and better order.
They simply disagree on whether expanding municipal police powers is the answer, and, crucially, whether the safeguards will be strong enough to prevent that power from becoming a problem of its own.
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