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which they say are now exposing them to water borne diseases.
When Chronicle visited the town on Wednesday, the whole town, including the town centre, had no water and people had to rely on the few boreholes available in the town.
Speaking to Chronicle, the residents said they sometimes go for more than three days without water, yet they receive their monthly bills and pay for the water.
They said the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa) was putting their lives at risk, especially at this time of the year, which usually records high cases of disease outbreaks such as cholera.
“We have spent the whole day without water today and I do not know for how long we are going to go without water. This is a usual problem in Plumtree but we cannot cope with the situation,” said Mr Douglas Phuthi from Mathendele Township
“We have a few boreholes in the town which cannot cater for everyone. This forces people to use nearby bushes to relieve themselves and it is not healthy at all.”
Mr Phuthi said it would be better if the water authority could create a schedule for the water cuts, instead of letting the whole town go for days without water.
“When the whole of town does not have water, it means that people will have nowhere to fetch water. I would like to appeal to the authority to at least create a schedule so that those without water can ask from others or the town centre, since the boreholes are inadequate.
“They should have the courtesy to inform us before they cut water supplies to the residents so that they can fill their containers with water,” said Mr Phuthi.
Plumtree Town Council Secretary Mr Davies Dumezweni Luthe said there was nothing they could do about the water situation in the town, as Zinwa was responsible for the management of water.
“We do not control the water portfolio as a local authority. However, ZINWA informed us that they had problems with their water system and they were working on it. All we can do is wait for the problem to be solved,” said Mr Luthe.
“The whole town is dry and people have a few water reserves in their houses. If the problem persists then we have a big problem.”
Mr Luthe said the town council had made presentations to the Urban Councils Association of Zimbabwe (UCAZ) to take over the management of water in the town.
“After we made the presentations, UCAZ sent engineers to assess our readiness and we are still waiting for approval from the Ministry of Local Government, Urban and Rural Development and the Ministry of Water Resources Development and Management.
“In our 2012 budget, we have also planned to drill six boreholes for every ward in the town. We currently have three boreholes and they are not adequate to sustain everyone,” said Mr Luthe.
Efforts to get a comment from the Zinwa water supply manager for Umzingwane District, Mr Stanley Nazombe were fruitless as he was not available in the office and his phone was not reachable.
Online Reporter