Online Reporter
Ronald Mpofu
PLUMTREE residents are boiling mad after being forced to live without water for days on end as the town endures a punishing dry spell blamed on debts and power cuts.
The entire town, including schools, health centres, businesses and even government offices, has gone dry, with residents accusing the municipality of poor management and daylight robbery through inflated water bills.
Council issued a public notice on Monday, promising to restore water within 72 hours but only if there is no power failure during that period.
“Council undertakes to restore supplies to consumers with up-to-date accounts. However, this requires 72 hours of uninterrupted power supply to fully charge the water network,” read the notice.
The local authority warned that disconnection notices were being sent to defaulting consumers and urged residents to visit the treasury department for payment plans.
However, residents say the council is giving them the short end of the stick. Many are fuming over hefty bills they say make no sense, some reaching as high as US$1 400.
“How can we be billed US$100 a month when water rarely comes out of the tap?” fumed one resident.
Another said she only owed for two months yet was shocked to find her account reading US$209.
“I have always paid on time until July. Now I am being billed ridiculous amounts. Something is fishy,” she said.
Others suspect the council is secretly sneaking back the US$12 monthly development levy that residents rejected earlier this year.
“They are still billing us for that levy, only this time they are hiding it,” complained another resident on a local WhatsApp group.
The municipality has since urged disgruntled residents to channel their grievances through ward councillors.
“If you require clarifications, kindly lodge them through the available communication channels,” council said, insisting it was working to restore normal water supply.
Bongani Ndlovu