Chronicle Editor
Fairness Moyana in Hwange
RESIDENTS of Empumalanga Phase 4 in Hwange Town have issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the Hwange Local Board (HLB) and Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa) to restore water supplies.
The residents have gone for three months without water after Zinwa disconnected its bulk water supply to HLB over a legacy debt.
The development comes at a time when the two entities are locked in a protracted battle over the management of water in the coal mining town.
About 700 residents were affected by the move to disconnect water supplies to Empumalanga Phase 4. Zinwa said it decided to disconnect supplies after the bill had ballooned to ZiG105 million.
Residents said they have tried to engage Zinwa and HLB but their efforts have been fruitless and they now fear that the non-availability of running water could trigger an outbreak of water-borne diseases.
They said they were now appealing for Government intervention.
“We had meetings with Zinwa, Hwange Local Board and ZRP and each time Zinwa promised to reconnect the water but nothing materialised,” said residents in a letter.
The residents said they were giving Zinwa and HLB, 48 hours to reconnect the water after which they will be left with not option but to demonstrate at the offices.
Over 500 people signed the petition in support of the collective action. The residents have on several occasions applied to the police to hold a peaceful march to force the authority to resolve the impasse but were barred.
Hwange Residents’ Association chairperson, Mr Piwe Mhaba Ngwenya said the latest action is meant to compel Zinwa and HLB to prioritise the residents’ lives.
Already, there are reports of four suspected new cholera cases detected in the suburb.
“The people who are supposed to be giving us water seem not to understand the situation. As it is, we have a cholera outbreak. We are petitioning authorities so that they understand and appreciate the gravity of the problem,” said Mr Ngwenya.
It is not the first time that residents have been disconnected. Early last year, Zinwa again disconnected water supplies to Empumalanga Phase 4.
The war intensified following Zinwa’s introduction of pre-paid water meters, which were initially rejected by residents who accused the authority of imposing the model on them. In light of this development, the local authority has since resolved to hand over management of water in Phase 4 to Zinwa, arguing that while they have the capacity, the water regulator was making it practically impossible to run it.
Water barons have also emerged in the sprawling suburb with some taking advantage of the dire situation to fleece desperate residents, especially the elderly. Some residents have been forced to use unprotected water sources such as streams, with women now at risk of being attacked and sexually abused.
HLB is, as a stop gap measure, supplying water using a 5 000-litre water bowser but residents are saying the water is not enough.
Efforts to get a comment from HLB acting town secretary, Mr Paulos Mabhureni and Zinwa head of corporate communication and marketing, Mrs Marjorie Munyonga were fruitless as they had not responded to questions sent to their mobile phones.
Online Reporter