{"id":47223,"date":"2021-09-26T18:56:40","date_gmt":"2021-09-26T16:56:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/?p=47223"},"modified":"2021-09-26T18:41:54","modified_gmt":"2021-09-26T16:41:54","slug":"bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.cc\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations","title":{"rendered":"Bulawayo, Residents Clash Over Social Media Budget Consultations"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press<\/a> – Zimbabwe<\/a>. <\/strong><\/span>By Bulawayo Correspondent<\/b> – BULAWAYO residents have clashed with their local council over the latter\u2019s decision to conduct the 2021 budget performance review and the 2022 proposed budget through social media platforms.<\/p>\n

The Bulawayo City Council (BCC) recently notified residents and other stakeholders through a circular that budget consultations be conducted on WhatsApp groups from September 29.<\/p>\n

Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association (BPRA) last Thursday wrote to the BCC raising concerns over the local council\u2019s decision to conduct the two processes over social media platforms.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis letter serves to raise concerns over the decision by Bulawayo City Council to conduct the 2021 budget performance review as well as present the 2022 proposed budget via WhatsApp platform,\u201d the letter reads in part.<\/p>\n

\u201cBPRA has noted with concern a circular written by the BCC noting that these consultations will be conducted on WhatsApp groups from Wednesday 29 September 2021.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur main concern is on combining the review of the 2021 budget process with the presentation of the 2022 proposed budget,\u201d said BPRA coordinator Emmanuel Ndlovu.<\/p>\n

The residents\u2019 association argued the 2021 budget performance review is an essential process for residents to monitor the use of public funds by the local authority and it would not be effective to combine it with the 2022 proposed budget presentations.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is also no reliable portal for residents to continuously access information in order to periodically review the budget, thus this process is critical and should be given adequate time,\u201d Ndlovu added.<\/p>\n

The residents said they were also uncomfortable with using WhatsApp groups as the platform had in the past to be a failure.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnother concern is the use of WhatsApp groups to conduct budget consultations as this platform proved to be ineffective during the 2021 budget consultation process.<\/p>\n

\u201cResidents raised concerns the previous budget consultation process did not serve its purpose as most residents either did not have data or the times were inconvenient for them to attend the organised WhatsApp meetings. The WhatsApp meetings were also inadequate for residents to make their contributions,\u201d said Ndlovu.<\/p>\n

He also noted key council staff failed to attend the previous meetings.<\/p>\n

\u201cAlso due to the clashing times for these meetings, the most relevant council staff to the budget process such as the finance director could not attend all the meetings.<\/p>\n

\u201cChallenges arose as some of the council staff members who were allocated to conduct these meetings could not well articulate the financial figures and components resultantly leading to futile deliberations,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The residents suggested the local council should seriously consider holding physical meetings in the wake of relaxed Covid-19 regulations.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs the Covid-19 cases in the country have significantly dropped and public gatherings limited to 150 people are allowed the 2021 budget review process, and the 2022 budget consultation meetings, should be conducted separately and physically to ensure that these processes have value and serve their purposes. BPRA is also willing to organize these meetings for BCC,\u201d added Ndlovu.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – Zimbabwe. By Bulawayo Correspondent – BULAWAYO residents have clashed with their local council over the latter\u2019s decision to conduct the 2021 budget performance review and the 2022 proposed budget through social media platforms. The Bulawayo City Council (BCC) recently notified residents and other stakeholders through a circular that budget consultations be conducted on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":47222,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,6,35,15],"tags":[1493,2189,19],"class_list":{"0":"post-47223","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-all-news","8":"category-economy","9":"category-homepage-english","10":"category-twitter","11":"tag-africa-press","12":"tag-africa-press-zimbabwe-2","13":"tag-zimbabwe"},"yoast_head":"\nBulawayo, Residents Clash Over Social Media Budget Consultations - zimbabwe<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"By Bulawayo Correspondent - BULAWAYO residents have clashed with their local council over the latter\u2019s decision t ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Bulawayo, Residents Clash Over Social Media Budget Consultations\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Bulawayo Correspondent - BULAWAYO residents have clashed with their local council over the latter\u2019s decision t ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"zimbabwe\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-09-26T16:56:40+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-09-26T16:41:54+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/sites\/14\/2021\/09\/img-6150a2b84791f.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"800\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"532\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations\",\"name\":\"Bulawayo, Residents Clash Over Social Media Budget Consultations - zimbabwe\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/sites\/14\/2021\/09\/img-6150a2b84791f.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-09-26T16:56:40+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-09-26T16:41:54+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/#\/schema\/person\/2e02b5816e71b1149d79877f669a85e4\"},\"description\":\"By Bulawayo Correspondent - BULAWAYO residents have clashed with their local council over the latter\u2019s decision t ...\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/sites\/14\/2021\/09\/img-6150a2b84791f.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/sites\/14\/2021\/09\/img-6150a2b84791f.jpg\",\"width\":800,\"height\":532,\"caption\":\"Bulawayo, Residents Clash Over Social Media Budget Consultations\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.cc\/zimbabwe\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Bulawayo, Residents Clash Over Social Media Budget Consultations\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/\",\"name\":\"zimbabwe\",\"description\":\"\u0623\u062e\u0628\u0627\u0631 \u064a\u0648\u0645\u064a\u0629 \u0639\u0644\u0649 \u0645\u062f\u0627\u0631 \u0627\u0644\u0633\u0627\u0639\u0629\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/#\/schema\/person\/2e02b5816e71b1149d79877f669a85e4\",\"name\":\"cfeditoren\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Bulawayo, Residents Clash Over Social Media Budget Consultations - zimbabwe","description":"By Bulawayo Correspondent - BULAWAYO residents have clashed with their local council over the latter\u2019s decision t ...","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Bulawayo, Residents Clash Over Social Media Budget Consultations","og_description":"By Bulawayo Correspondent - BULAWAYO residents have clashed with their local council over the latter\u2019s decision t ...","og_url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations","og_site_name":"zimbabwe","article_published_time":"2021-09-26T16:56:40+00:00","article_modified_time":"2021-09-26T16:41:54+00:00","og_image":[{"width":800,"height":532,"url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/sites\/14\/2021\/09\/img-6150a2b84791f.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"cfeditoren","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"cfeditoren","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations","name":"Bulawayo, Residents Clash Over Social Media Budget Consultations - zimbabwe","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/sites\/14\/2021\/09\/img-6150a2b84791f.jpg","datePublished":"2021-09-26T16:56:40+00:00","dateModified":"2021-09-26T16:41:54+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/#\/schema\/person\/2e02b5816e71b1149d79877f669a85e4"},"description":"By Bulawayo Correspondent - BULAWAYO residents have clashed with their local council over the latter\u2019s decision t ...","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/sites\/14\/2021\/09\/img-6150a2b84791f.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/sites\/14\/2021\/09\/img-6150a2b84791f.jpg","width":800,"height":532,"caption":"Bulawayo, Residents Clash Over Social Media Budget Consultations"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/bulawayo-residents-clash-over-social-media-budget-consultations#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.cc\/zimbabwe\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Bulawayo, Residents Clash Over Social Media Budget Consultations"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/","name":"zimbabwe","description":"\u0623\u062e\u0628\u0627\u0631 \u064a\u0648\u0645\u064a\u0629 \u0639\u0644\u0649 \u0645\u062f\u0627\u0631 \u0627\u0644\u0633\u0627\u0639\u0629","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/#\/schema\/person\/2e02b5816e71b1149d79877f669a85e4","name":"cfeditoren"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.cc\/zimbabwe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47223","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.cc\/zimbabwe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.cc\/zimbabwe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.cc\/zimbabwe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/84"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.cc\/zimbabwe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=47223"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.cc\/zimbabwe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/47223\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.cc\/zimbabwe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/47222"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.cc\/zimbabwe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=47223"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.cc\/zimbabwe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=47223"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.cc\/zimbabwe\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=47223"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}