Source: Recreational parks an eyesore | The Sunday Mail
Tendai Chara
WITH strong feelings of nostalgia, Morris Mapope, who resides in Harare’s high-density suburb of Glen Norah, recalled how his social life used to revolve around the environs of the Harare City Council-owned Glen Norah recreational park.
“As a boy, I used to play soccer at a ground that was within the park. When I was a teenager, I used to go to the park for fishing. My first ever date happened to be a stroll in the park when I was 20,” recalled the 49-year-old-Mapope.
Sadly, for Mapope, the park — which is of sentimental value to many people who grew up in Glen Norah and the other high-density suburbs of Highfield and Glen View — is now in a sorry state.
Overgrown by tall grass and neglected trees, Apostolic sects have since turned the park’s once lush green lawns into shrines.
The dam has since dried up and a number of church buildings are cropping up within the park.
Some families have since turned some parts of the park into thriving maize fields.
Over the years, there has been a notable increase in the number of recreational facilities that have either been neglected or have been converted for other uses in Harare and Chitungwiza.
This neglect is depriving young people of the much-needed recreation, leaving them idle and frustrated.
From observation, it appears both the Harare City Council and private players are focusing more on adult entertainment.
A tour of recreational facilities in Harare by The Sunday Mail Society revealed a shocking trend where some rundown recreational facilities have been turned into drugs and prostitution dens.
Of the neglected recreational areas, the multi-purpose Mbare Netball Complex is the worst affected.
Offcially opened amid pomp and fanfare in 1995, the complex, which was used during the 1995 All Africa Games, was designed to host tennis, athletics, netball and basketball, among other sporting disciplines.
The complex is now an eyesore, with the facility’s dilapidated and vandalised changing rooms now housing homeless drug addicts and prostitutes.
Without a perimeter fence, a tennis court has since been converted into an Apostolic sect shrine.
Those who pass through the once majestic complex are greeted by rusty and damaged basketball hoops.
Mounds of garbage, which are a common sight in places surrounding the complex, emit an unpleasant smell.
The nearby Number 7 Ground, which was designed to host rugby games, is in a far worse condition, with overgrown trees and grass.
The goalposts have since been vandalised and a squatter has erected a plastic shack in the ground.
Without a perimeter wall, drug addicts and prostitutes now call part of the sports facility home.
Change of use
In recent years, the Harare City Council has been turning recreational parks into business premises.
In Sunningdale, a recreational park that was located at the corner of Seke Road and Boshoff Drive was turned into business premises.
An open space near Tsiga shops in Mbare, where the locals used to play soccer, has since been fenced off.
According to local residents, the Harare City Council has earmarked the space for other purposes.
In Warren Park, an open space that was used by the locals for recreation, has been converted into a church stand.
In Chitungwiza, a number of football grounds have been turned into residential areas.
Gwanzura Stadium is now idle while Rufaro Stadium is being renovated.
Dzivaresekwa and Warren Park stadia are closed.
Harare Residents Trust executive director Precious Shumba is on record confirming the lack of social amenities in the capital city.
“The Harare City Council has ensured that residents do not have recreational facilities within their suburbs. Land designated for recreational facilities and services, including open spaces, has been sold and converted to residential stands,” Mr Shumba said in an interview with The Sunday Mail Society.
The other side of town
The absence of recreational areas in Harare’s high-density areas does not, however, mean that the capital city is starved of recreation.
Among the capital city’s prime recreational areas are the Harare Gardens, the Long Cheng Plaza and the Mukuvisi Woodlands.
In central Harare, Greenwood Park, the Botanical Gardens and Africa Unity Square are ideal places for recreation.
Residents, however, prefer those recreational areas close to where they stay.
“I prefer recreational areas that are nearer. As for the Long Cheng Plaza and Mukuvisi Woodlands, one has to pump out a substantial amount of money in order to access the facilities,” said John Kamupira, of Warren Park.
Of late, the Harare Gardens have become less safe, with vagrants causing havoc.
Nostalgia
Marcus Makoni, who grew up in Mbare during the early 1990s, recalled how he used to go to the Mbare Netball Complex for recreation.
“We used to flock to Stodart Hall to watch movies during weekends. The Mbare Netball Complex was always teeming with youngsters, who were taking part in sporting activities,” Makoni said.
In the city centre, young people would watch movies at places like the Liberty Cinema in downtown Harare, Rainbow Theatres on Robert Mugabe Road and the Park Lane movie house. Some of the movie theatres have been tuned into churches or shops.
The youngsters would also frequent the Ster-Kinekor theatres that were dotted across the Harare central business district. The remaining movie houses in the capital are at Joina City, in Borrowdale and Westgate.
In Highfield, young people would troop to the Cyril Jennings Hall for musical shows and to watch movies.
The Zimbabwe Hall, again in Highfield, was also a popular meeting point for youths.
In Mufakose, the youngsters often congregated at Rutendo Hall.
In Dzivaresekwa, recreational activities were held at the Dzivaresekwa Hall.
In total, the City of Harare has 21 community halls and 19 community centres.
Among the community centres are Chizhanje in Mabvuku, and the Glen Norah Community Centre in Glen Norah.
Distress calls
Harare residents have not idly watched as they are starved of recreational activities.
Sydney Nzvanzvike, the chairman of the Glen Norah Park Rehabilitation Organisation, whose major focus is to rehabilitate the Glen Norah park, said residents will not rest until the facility is restored to its former glory.
“The park means a lot to us, as residents. We are going to do all we can to make sure that it is restored to its former glory,” Nzvanzvike vowed.
The organisation is pooling resources for the restoration of the park.
Freddy Kachakwara, a basketball coach whose community team uses the dilapidated Mbare Netball Complex, said there is an urgent need for the relevant authorities to maintain and even establish new recreational centres in Harare.
“As you can see, the facilities are in a mess. There are no toilets and dressing rooms, and this place is not well-secured. I work with girls and the conditions here are not good for the development of the girl child,” Kachakwara said.
Casper Chigama, of House of Arts, an organisation that works with the youths in fighting drug and substance abuse, says the lack of recreational facilities is working against his organisation’s goals.
“The absence of recreational facilities is working against our set goals. Last year, we wanted to conduct a drug and substance awareness campaign in Hatcliffe but this suburb does not have a single football ground,” Chigama said.
Young people in a dilemma
The absence of open spaces such as parks and playgrounds is forcing young people to spend a lot of time indoors, playing video games, watching television and sur ng the internet.
“We are forced to spend much of our time indoors. In my case, I enjoy studying at the nearby park but the facility is not well taken care of. I fear that I might be robbed and raped,” Melissa Zulu, a 16-year-old Glen Norah resident, said.
Online sources indicate that the unavailability of recreational parks causes lack of physical activity, which is one of the greatest contributors of childhood obesity.
Harare City Council spokesperson Mr Innocent Ruwende said the local authority is working on rehabilitating some of the recreational facilities.
“As for the Mbare Netball Complex, we are working with our partners to refurbish the facility. We are also putting security upgrades to curb vandalism. We are carrying out phased rehabilitations. After Rufaro, we are moving to other stadia and facilities,” Mr Ruwende said.
Council is, according to Mr Ruwende, scouting for partners to work with on the rehabilitation of the Glen Norah recreational park.
He said council will also fence off the area to deter illegal farming.
