City Parking threatened with legal action over USD parking fees.
Harare lawyer Munyaradzi Bwanya has threatened to sue City Parking.
City Parking which collects parking fees for the City of Harare announced new parking fees in United States dollars.
In a letter to City Parking Bwanya says the new parking fees could see professionals who work in Harare’s Central Business District pay up to USD$160 or ZWL$10 187 per month using the current official exchange rate.
Bwanya also questions how City Parking came up with the new parking fees
Part of Bwanya’s letter to City Parking argues “that both the extent of the Increment and the manner in which it was done are unlawful, unreasonable, and unfair.”
Bwanya urges City Parking to increase fees “in a manner that is in the public interests”. He further advises City Parking to withdraw its announcement because it did not consult motorists and residents; and that it was served on “a mere twenty-four (24) hours” which he said, “is grossly unreasonable and unjust and is a recipe for self-help measures and unnecessary confrontation between your employees and motorists.”
He said failure by City Parking to desist from implementing the new parking tariff as planned on 2. July 2020, will result in him taking legal action against the entity without further notice.
Savanna News publishes the full letters below:
The City of Harare sent out a notice that parking fees will now be charged in USD. The notice also said those intending to pay in local currency will do so at the prevailing rate.
According to the notice, the on-street parking fee in Harare is US$1 per hour or the Zim dollar equivalent prevailing interbank rate. It is not clear if the same per hour charge applies for both street parking and casual parkade and car park parking, and contract parking off the street.
It is not yet clear if the City of Harare got permission from the Ministry of Local Government and National Housing to set parking tariffs in United States dollars.