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“We have a serious water shortage here so we are forced to get it from these unprotected wells. The borehole that is meant to serve our village broke down so we are forced to use this water,” she said.
When asked whether they first purify the water before drinking it, Ms Moyo said they drank the water without boiling or treating it first, which results in children often suffering from diarrhoea.
“We have no choice but to drink the water as it is. We do not have a borehole so what are we supposed to do?
“When our borehole broke down, the local authority said it would rehabilitate it but nothing has been done to date.
“We are no longer afraid of getting sick because this is all the water we have at our disposal,” she said.
Ms Moyo said they could not walk to the neighbouring village to fetch safe drinking water because they too relied on water from unprotected wells, imithombo.
She, however, said there had been an improvement in the infrastructure of the schools in the area lately and schools were being improved.
“Although we are happy that the schools are being fixed, they have been given too much attention.
“They are neglecting our needs and concentrating too much on developing schools,” said Ms Moyo.
She said the medical facilities in the area were also improving with Nkunzi Clinic adequately equipped to deal with patients.
Chefunye Business Centre was on Thursday afternoon a hive of activity with villagers running their errands, some just milling around while others danced to music.
After a snap survey at the business centre, it was surprising to note that the villagers did not know their elected representative, Mr Maxwell Dube, who got a seat in the House of Assembly under an MDC ticket.
Mr William Gomo (78) from Gomo Village said they faced a water shortage problem. This had been worsened by the fact that there are no dams in the area.
“Water is a serious problem. We do not have dams so this has made the situation worse. Now we have to share the water with our cattle,” he said.
Mr Gomo said the clinic in the area where he lives has not been helpful to villagers because it does not have the necessary drugs.
“You go to the clinic for medical attention only to be told that there is no medication. Is that fair? How can they not even have painkillers? The MP should find ways of getting medication to our clinic,” he suggested.
Drifting back to the issue of water, Mr Gomo said:
“The Government should do something to address our water crisis. We cannot survive from these unprotected wells forever and we can not continue sharing the water we rely on for drinking with our cattle.”
There are no roads to talk about in most parts of the constituency. Although some villagers felt that the MP had made significant strides in developing the constituency, others felt that they were being neglected.
Gogo Howarth Lunga (80) of Thengela Village said: “We are trying our best to survive but it seems we are fighting a losing battle. We even try to cultivate crops but we get nothing.
“Nothing is going well for us. The people who are supposed to be helping us are not doing anything while we get a step closer to our graves everyday.”
Gogo Lunga stays with two of her children and five grandchildren.
The grandchildren are between the ages of one and four. Her children Thando (32) and Esnath (40) are both unemployed because of their medical conditions. They were both never married.
“I have grandchildren to take care of yet l am not able to work. I am now old so it is difficult for me to feed my grandchildren and take care of my children who are supposed to be taking care of me.
“Thando is very ill at the moment but we have not managed to take her to the clinic. We do not even have enough food and clean water.
“My other daughter is also unwell but she tries to help here and there,” said gogo Lunga.
She said she hoped that she would benefit from the food relief programmes that were being offered to families around the constituency but she had not found any joy.
“We have not yet received anything. How does the Government choose who benefits from the food handouts? We are really suffering and we need help. I am sure my family is not the only one suffering like this,” said gogo Lunga.
Mr Dube is, however, popular among some of his constituents.
Ms Sithobekile Sibanda (36) from Nshaba had nothing but praises to sing about her MP.
“I know the MP, Maxwell Dube and he has been very helpful. He has built a clinic and drilled a borehole in our area.
“Although he has not dealt with all of our problems, he is doing something. Our children are going to school and we have food to eat.
“All our problems will never be solved but l think the priority should be the drilling of more boreholes and the building of more medical facilities,” said Ms Sibanda.
Councillor for Ward 15 Alois Ndebele admitted that there was a serious water shortage in wards 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 and 20.
He said because of the inadequate rains, the water sources in the area were drying up.
“Our priority at the moment is to provide villagers with safe drinking water,” said Clr Ndebele.
Turning to the previous allocation of the Constituency Development Fund, Clr Ndebele said Mr Dube called all the councillors who later formed a committee and decided on what would be done with the money.
“In Ward 22, flea market stalls and toilets were built for the women that sell their wares in the area. In Ward 17, a borehole was drilled and a sewage tank constructed for the clinic.
“In Ward 14, 100 bags of cement were donated towards the construction of a dam and another 100 bags were donated to Nanda Secondary School to assist in the construction of the school.
“Another borehole was meant to be drilled in Ward 20 but unfortunately no water was found when the area was surveyed,” said Clr Ndebele.
He said although the councillors and the MP were from different political parties, they worked together well.
“There is a prospective gold mine in Dogwe where some Chinese people have started surveying the place. We hope that the project will provide employment for the locals.
“It is a good initiative, which could see the constituency developing further,” said Clr Ndebele.
Clr Ndebele said if it were not for the shortage of money, more boreholes could have been drilled in the constituency.
“The District Development Fund is going to be used to rehabilitate the broken down boreholes around the constituency. I agree that the roads are bad but the Government has no money.
“It is pleasing to note that many people around the constituency now seek medical attention unlike before where they would stay at home until it was too late.
“They are now being tested for HIV and clinics such as Nkunzi now offer antiretroviral treatment,” he said.
Clr Ndebele said Medecins Sans Frontiers, a Non Governmental Organisation, had been highly involved in the rehabilitation of the clinics in the constituency.
“Our schools are now improving. We now have qualified teachers. Dikili High School even now offers classes to adults over 30 years old after 2pm. The school head initiated the programme,” he said.
Online Reporter