 In the early twenty-first century, Harare has been adversely affected by the political and economic crisis that is currently plaguing Zimbabwe, after the contested 2002 presidential election and 2005 parliamentary elections.The elected council was replaced by a government-appointed commission for alleged inefficiency, but essential services such as rubbish collection and street repairs have rapidly worsened, and are now virtually non-existent.In May 2006, the Zimbabwean newspaper the "Financial Gazette", described the city in an editorial as a "sunshine city-turned-sewage farm".