Suburban
THE level of noise pollution in most Harare suburbs now requires the City of Harare to launch a city-wide operation against noise pollution as nightclubs, churches and erroneous households are causing untold inconvenience and being a nuisance to law-abiding residents.
Peter Tanyanyiwa Suburban Reporter
It is now a common feature to have nightclubs playing music from late at night into the wee hours of the morning disturbing the peace and rest of residents.
Churches are also being accused of playing music at abnormally high levels during their services and prayer meetings making it virtually impossible for people to enjoy their rest at home. A number of households have also been flagged for hosting noisy parties where music is played at ear piercing levels while party goers park their cars on the streets blocking neighbours from entering or leaving their premises.
A number of residents are said to have sold their houses, particularly in Chisipite around the traffic circle along ED Mnangagwa Road (formerly Enterprise Road) near Chisipite shopping centre, and moved to other neighbourhoods because they could not stand the levels of noise pollution from these errant churches, nightclubs and households which host noisy house parties.
In light of these unfortunate developments, Harare North Member of the National Assembly Mr Allan Markham has called on the local authority, the City of Harare (CoH) to embark on a vigorous noise pollution clampdown, covering the whole of Harare.
He said noise pollution was becoming a bigger problem for property owners, embassies and residents in general. In an interview, Mr Markham who has previously raised the noise pollution in Chisipite in Parliament, said the noise pollution being caused by churches, nightclubs and certain erroneous households in residential areas is causing unprecedented disruption in affected suburbs.
“The way forward as far as noise pollution is concerned is that the City of Harare should start clamping down on noise pollution. This should be an operation that won’t only cover the low density suburbs but the whole of Harare,” said Mr Markham. “The amount of disruption being caused by churches, nightclubs and erroneous households in residential areas is beyond comprehension and totally unacceptable. Take for example the Chisipite round about. Off the roundabout, they are disturbing residents and embassies. People are selling their houses and moving on. If you go to Pomona, there is a church causing havoc with live high volumes of music every Saturday and Sunday starting at 6:30 and residents have had enough. “Myself and the residents have brought this issue to the officials but there has not been a sufficient response. They may have sent one person to inspect but it’s not enough they must enforce the law,” said Mr Markham who served as Ward 18 councillor himself between 2013 and 2018.
There is growing evidence that noise pollution is not merely an annoyance like other forms of pollution but it has wide-ranging adverse health, social, and economic effects.
Noise pollution continues to grow in extent, frequency and severity as a result of population growth, urbanisation, and technological developments.
In the past the City of Harare has advised churches, bars and nightclubs to install sound-proof systems or equipment in their buildings so that their noise does not affect other neighbouring property owners or house owners in the suburbs where they are based.
In February Parliament heard about the irritating noise pollution Chisipite residents are having to endure which is said to be emanating from a house near the traffic circle along Emmerson Mnangagwa Road.
Residents have tried all available avenues to have the matter addressed without success.
Mr Markham said residents were not sure whether the house as being used as a night club or a church but the noise pollution was a terrible put off for those needing peaceful rest at home.
He told Parliament that for a number of years Chisipite residents have been complaining about the noise pollution from the said property and even during the Covid-19 lockdowns, the partying or worshipping was continuing.
The parties at the property in question are said to go until around 2am in the mornings.
“Honourable Speaker, my point is a difficult one, if you will bear with me on the issue. In our area we are suffering from a major increment in pollution and the pollution is noise. We have two areas in specific. Whether it is a night club or a church, but the one I really want to concentrate on is just south east of the Chisipite roundabout. That area has a house that over the years, residents have complained about and the council has changed the use. They have been very foggy about the issue. My concern is, in the last month, it has escalated,” said Mr Markham.
He said the owners of the property were disguising as if they were running a tea or coffee shop when in actual effect they were running a nightclub and efforts to get police to act against the activities there had been in vain.
“Very close to this house, one house away, is one of the embassies and this house is being used theoretically as a tea room but it is actually acting as a night club. Even during the era of Covid (lockdowns), no one reacted. I will just give two quick examples. The first one is we phoned the Borrowdale Police Station who told us categorically that they could not react because their hierarchy were there themselves. These parties carry on until 2.00 o’clock in the morning. Last week and maybe the week before, there were gun shots from the said house. This is very close…,” Mr Markham told Parliament on February 22 this year.
He said the ZRP VIP Protection Unit visited the place following the gunshots but the owners were said to be in the habit of name dropping senior Government officials in their defence. “The diplomatic police (ZRP VIP Protection Unit) or the arm that deals with the diplomatic corps came there. My issue is residents have been complaining for nearly 18 months about this. This person is using names from the top to the middle management of our Government and it has to be stopped,” said the Harare North MP. The Speaker Advocate Jacob Mudenda directed the Parliamentary Committee on Home Affairs to summon the Home Affairs and Cultural Heritage Affairs Minister Kazembe Kazembe to explain why no action is being taken on the residents’ complaints.
“The Committee on Home Affairs, we have to summon the Minister of Home Affairs to find out why the police is not reacting accordingly. Is the chairman around or any member of the Home Affairs Committee?” asked Adv Mudenda.
The chairperson of the Parliamentary Committee on Defence, Home Affairs and Security Services and Umzwingwane MP Retired Brigadier General Levi Mayihlome indicated that he was present and the Speaker directed him to urgently act on the matter.
