While Harare struggles with basic services, city council executives take home $500,000 in high salaries, showing a clear disregard for residents' needs The Harare City Council appears to prioritize the wallets of its top executives over the urgent needs of its residents. While the city grapples with an acute crisis ranging from uncollected refuse and persistent sewage spills to malfunctioning traffic lights and unsafe drinking water the council's leadership continues to reward itself with extravagant salaries. During a recent session of the Commission of Inquiry, overseen by Retired Judge Justice Maphios Cheda, Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume disclosed that the council's executives are collectively siphoning off a staggering half a million US dollars each month. The Town Clerk stands out with an eye-watering salary of $27,000, while even the lowest-paid executive nets a comfortable $15,000. “I sought a report on salaries from the Human Resources director, he refused, citing an order from the Town Clerk. When he finally showed me the document in confidence, it confirmed that the highest-paid executive earns $27,000,” Mafume testified. When pressed by Commission lead evidence Thabani Mpofu about the absence of additional benefits, Mafume confirmed that total compensation could exceed $30,000 when perks were included. Justice Cheda probed deeper, questioning Mafume’s lack of authority to rein in such lavish expenditures. The mayor lamented that executives often remind him of his limited power, as he is not an executive mayor. The discord within the City Council was palpable, with Mafume admitting that relations between the executive and councillors are “not harmonious.” Further scrutiny revealed the council’s negligence regarding safety, particularly with the proliferation of service stations in residential areas—an issue Town Planning Director Samuel Nyabeza has vowed to address. The mayor faced tough questions about the non-functional traffic lights, which have contributed to numerous accidents, some tragically lethal.