Guta raMambo
Guta raMambo | |
|---|---|
City | |
 | |
| Motto(s): Akavimbika (Rwizi) Ever Loyal | |
| Country | File:RwizikuruFlag.PNG Rwizikuru |
| District | Gutaguru |
| Founded | 1973 |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Ingwe Gwisai |
| Population (2021) | |
| • City | 204,985 |
| • Rank | 22nd in Rwizikuru |
| • Urban | 204,985 |
| • Metro | 294,667 |
| Time zone | UTC+3:45 (Rwizikuran Standard Time) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3:45 (not observed) |
Guta raMambo is the official capital city of Rwizikuru, having been declared capital in 1978 to replace Port Fitzhubert as the capital city of the country, and also is the seat of the district of Gutaguru. Located on the western bank of the Rwizikuru River, Guta raMambo was developed as a planned capital in the 1970s due to a combination of fear of another invasion in the aftermath of the Mabifian-Rwizikuran War and the Garamburan War of Independence, and a desire to improve control over the peripherial regions of Rwizikuru.
Etymology
The name Guta raMambo derives from the Rwizi phrase meaning city of the King. This was a name that was used for present-day Munzwa during the Rwizi Empire which existed from the twelfth century to the middle of the seventeenth century, and renamed a nickname until its abolition.
Prior to 1973, it was home to a village called Dryden, with the name coming from Jonas Dryden, a colonial administrator who oversaw part of the construction of the Rusere-Port Fitzhubert railway.
History
Pre-1973
The site of present-day Guta raMambo had been inhabited for as long as humans have existed along the banks of the Rwizikuru River. However, the area was used mostly for agriculture, with the remaining areas being natural forests.
Although the site of present-day Guta raMambo was home to several villages over the course of its history, the town only started to develop into a town in the early 20th century, when the Rusere-Port Fitzhubert railway established a water stop on the site of Guta raMambo. The stop was named after Jonas Dryden, who was a colonial administrator who oversaw part of the construction of the Rusere-Port Fitzhubert railway.
By 1911, Dryden was listed on the census as a hamlet, comprising of five Eucleans, and eleven Bahians. Over the next few decades, the population grew, with Dryden being incorporated as a village in 1939. By 1941, Dryden had a population of 315 people, where the population largely stayed as is over the next two decades.
Despite Dryden's unimportance, the government of Rwizikuru as early as 1952 eyed the site to be home of a new capital city to replace Port Fitzhubert, due to its central location which would bring "unity" to all people from Yekumavirira to East Riziland. However, these schemes to relocate the capital generally went nowhere during the 1950s and 1960s due to cost concerns and most proposals focused on moving the capital to Munzwa instead.
In 1962, Vudzijena Nhema began making plans for a mini-Mukoma (present-day Amankose) to serve as the capital of Rwizikuru, with Nhema selecting Dryden as "the most suitable site" for the project. However, any plans to relocate the capital were put on hold following the 1963 and 1964 coups d'etat as the National Salvation Council sought to present a more pro-Euclean image.
Construction
Following the end of the Mabifian-Rwizikuran War, and the Garamburan War of Independence in 1969, Mambo Izibongo Ngonidzashe realized that with the advance on the Mugwagwa which connected the cities of what had been Port Vaugeois (present-day Port Tsalar, Mabifian), Port Graham, and Port Fitzhubert, Port Fitzhubert would be vulnerable to a future Mabifian invasion of Rwizikuru in the event that the Mabifians broke the Treaty of Snarksburgh.
At the same time, Izibongo Ngonidzashe realised that a more central location for the Rwizikuran capital would help improve control over the peripherial regions, particularly over the Northern Territory, but to a lesser extent also Randaland and North Balisaland compared to Port Fitzhubert, which was situated on a coastal estuary.
Over the next four years, government officials scouted potential sites, with most of these sites being in the Midlands Province, as the area was centrally located. Among the options were Crogan and Munzwa, but by 1971, it became clear that the capital should be completely built from scratch as designating an existing urban centre would "cause the rest of the country to feel neglected."
On 2 December, 1973, Izibongo Ngonidzashe planted a cross to declare the site of Dryden to be home to the new capital city, on the basis of easy transport links by both the Rusere-Port Fitzhubert railway and the Rwizikuru River, while still being able to defend itself from a Mabifian invasion. He also proclaimed the name of the town to be Guta raMambo, or city of the king.
In 1974, Jim Chimusasa was asked by Izibongo Ngonidzashe to design the city. Chimamusa would design a city that was "low to the ground" akin to traditional Rwizi buildings, and not monumental unlike planned capital cities such as New Mina (present-day Amankose). In accordance with Izibongo Ngonidzashe's conservative views, the existing settlement of Dryden was "integrated into the urban fabric," while newer areas were to be designed "more like traditional Rwizi villages." In 1975, Chimusasa's design was approved by the King, and construction began the same year.
By 1977, the first government officials began to relocate to Guta raMambo from Port Fitzhubert, and the following year, the royal family moved to the Ashcombe Palace on the outskirts of Guta raMambo. With the relocation of the royal family to Guta raMambo, the district of Gutaguru was carved out of the Midlands Province, partially so that the area can governed directly, and partially to avoid "favouring the Midlands over all the other provinces" in the country.
In 1981, Guta raMambo's population had risen to 14,509 people. At that point in time, most ministries, including the Ministry of Defence were still based in Port Fitzhubert, which made the city the site of the attempted coup d'etat against the Rwizikuran government that year. In its aftermath, the government accelerated efforts to relocate most government offices to Guta raMambo, and by the end of the decade, most high-ranking officials had relocated to Guta raMambo from Port Fitzhubert.
Contemporary era
In 1990, the city was officially declared completed by Crown Prince Joseph Ngonidzashe, who served as the Chief of Gutaguru at the time. The 1991 census showed that the city's population rose to 67,104 people.
While Joseph Ngonidzashe's tenure as Chief of Gutaguru was marked by his attempts to maintain the city's image by prohibiting the construction of skyscrapers, as Joseph Ngonidzashe believed that skyscrapers would "undermine the city's character," the lack of a cohesive urban plan after Chimamusa's urban plan led to the emergence of shantytowns on the edge of town, in part because the city became a regionally important hub for the surround towns and villages. By 2001, the city's population rose to 112,708 people.
After the death of Joseph Ngonidzashe in 2002, his successor as Chief, Thomas Mhlanga, instituted the first "comprehensive urban plan" for the capital since Jim Chimamusa's original 1974 plan for the city. Mhlanga's plan was to clear all twenty-one slums and to build neighbourhoods similar to Chimamusa's original plan for the city, with a target population of 300,000 people by 2022. However, Chimasusa's plan was hindered by a lack of money due to high levels of misappropriation and corruption by the Rwizikuran government, although by 2011, three new neighbourhoods were built in place of former slums, primarily near the Ashcombe Palace. That year, the city's population was measured to be 149,104 people by the Rwizikuran government.
In September 2014, Thomas Mhlanga retired from his position as Chief of Gutaguru, and Crown Prince Munashe Ngonidzashe was appointed as Chief of Gutaguru. As Chief, Munashe Ngonidzashe largely continued Mhlanga's policies, but with full access to the royal treasury, Munashe was able to accomplish more of the Mhlanga plan: by the time Munashe Ngonidzashe became regent in June 2016, a total of fifteen slums were cleared of the original twenty-one, with five new neighbourhoods being under construction at that point in time. By the time of Izibongo Ngonidzashe's death in February 2019, fourteen new neighbourhoods were built, although the district government noted that since 2002, six new slums emerged as the city continued to grow.
After the accession of Munashe Ngonidzashe to the Rwizikuran throne, he appointed Sikarudzi Mukonoweshuro to be the Chief of Gutaguru. However, Mukonoweshuro's direct rule over Guta raMambo was short-lived, because with the promulgation of the current Rwizikuran constitution in 2020, Guta raMambo's municipal government, which up to that point had been advisory, gained increased powers and importance.
With the adoption of the new constitution, Guta raMambo has been seeing a construction boom as the Rwizikuran government wants to build a permanent home for the National Assembly in Guta raMambo, which is expected to lead to more people moving into Guta raMambo.
Geography
Guta raMambo is located on the western bank of the Rwizikuru River, and bordered to the south by the Chitsvene Rover, which flows from the Plateau to the Rwizikuru River in an west to east direction. This provides the city with ample access to both freshwater and to trade along the Rwizikuru River with other cities such as Rusere, Munzwa, and Port Fitzhubert.
Guta raMambo is relatively low-lying, with the average elevation of Guta raMambo being at fourty meters (131 feet) above sea level. The city also contains several hills within city limits, with the highest point in Guta raMambo being Cheushe Hill, situated at 172 meters above sea level. The lowest point in Guta raMambo is at 121 metres below sea level, where the Chitsvene River empties out into the Rwizikuru River.
Climatically, Guta raMambo has a tropical monsoon climate like most of the rest of the plains region of Rwizikuru, with the city experiencing average highs of 33.1 °C (91.6 °F), average lows of 21.6 °C (70.9 °F), and 2,783.3 milimeters of rain per year, with most of the rain falling between April and October, as well as having high humidity.
Government
Like any city in Rwizikuru, it has an elected Mayor (Rwizi: meya) and an elected city council (kanzuru yeguta).
The city council comprises of five members, each representing one of the city's five wards, and are elected every four years by all inhabitants of Guta raMambo over the age of 21, as stipulated in the Civic Decree of 1965 issued by Izibongo Ngonidzashe. The mayor is also elected in the same elections that elect the rest of the city council.
Until the adoption of the current Rwizikuran constitution in 2020, Guta raMambo's city council had significantly less powers and responsibilities than other cities in Rwizikuru, with most decisions coming straight from the chief of Gutaguru. However, since 2020, Guta raMambo's city council has the same powers as any other city in the country.
The current mayor of Guta raMambo is Ingwe Gwisai, who was elected in 2022, defeating Rungano Sithole, who served as Mayor of Guta raMambo from 2014.
Demographics
As of the 2021 census, Guta raMambo has a population of 204,985 people within its borders, while its metropolitan area comprises of 294,667 people, mostly comprising small villages near Guta raMambo.
Of the 204,985 people living in Guta raMambo, 143,490 people, or around 70% percent of the population are Rwizi, followed by the Balisa at 30,748 people, or around 15% of the population, the Randa at 16,399 people, or around 8% of the population, and other ethnic groups at 14,348 people, or around 7% of the population, mostly Makomo and Mirite, with a tiny varungu presence in Guta raMambo.
In terms of religion, 164,603 people, or around 80.3% of the population are Sotirian. Of the Sotirians, 68,465 people, or around 33.4% of the population are members of the United Amended Church, 61,496 people, or around 30% of the population, are members of the Reformed and Amended Church of Sotirias, 29,108 people, or around 14.2% of the population, are Catholics, and the remaining 5,534 people, or around 2.7% of the population, follow other sects.
The next largest religion is Badi, followed by 33,823 people, or around 16.5% of the population, followed by Irfan, followed by 4,305 people, or around 2.1% of the population. Of the remaining 1.1% of the population, around 0.9% of the population follow traditional Bahian religions, with the remainder following other religions, with only trace amounts of irreligious people living in the capital city.
Transportation
Guta raMambo was selected to be the capital of Rwizikuru on account of its position on both the Rwizikuru River and the Rusere-Port Fitzhubert railway: to this day, there are daily train services going to both Port Fitzhubert and Rusere by railway, as well as water taxi service to communities along the Rwizikuru River that also transports goods in and out of the city.
It is connected by air via the Guta raMambo Airport, with daily flights to the Zophar Bohannon International Airport near Port Fitzhubert, weekly flights to regional airports across the country, and regular cargo flights. The Guta raMambo Airport is also the base for the fleet of royal jets, which are frequently used by the House of Ngonidzashe to fly to and from Euclean countries, such as Estmere, or for diplomatic purposes, such as flights to COMDEV member states.
While Guta raMambo is connected by road to Port Fitzhubert, Rusere, and Munzwa, these roads were historically not as well-maintained as the M-1 connecting Port Fitzhubert with Port Graham, due in part to Izibongo Ngonidzashe. However, since 2012, a project has been made to build a second motorway from Port Fitzhubert to the border with Yemet, going through Guta raMambo, although construction on the M-2 has been marred due to corruption issues, with the original completion date of 2018 having been extended several times.