Chronicle Editor
Patrick Chitumba
Messrs Thamsanqa Matshazi and Melusi Moyo reside in Mkoba 19 suburb in Gweru and as destiny will have it, they are now friends.
Their friendship was cemented by one common denominator — water. Mkoba 19 is one of the high-lying suburbs which face perennial water scarcity in Gweru. Mkoba 14, 18 and 21 also face similar water problems.
The novel coronavirus is presenting challenges across many facets of our lives, and water is no exception. While research related to water and Covid-19 is still emerging, there are some key areas, including safety of residents looking for water, access to it and infrastructure used in fetching water such as boreholes, which are a cause for concern.
In this case, Messrs Matshazi and Moyo together with other residents in the MDC Alliance-run council have thrown caution out the window as they look for water in the face of Covid-19, which requires people to practise social distancing as one of the ways of slowing down its spread.
The borehole is community-owned and different people with different approaches to issues of hygiene meet at the same time and take turns to fetch water from it.
And how did this friendship between Mr Matshazi and Mr Moyo come into being?
They use the same vehicle to come to fetch water from the borehole adjacent to Mpumelelo Primary School in Mkoba 15.
In order to collect as much water as possible so that they don’t return to the borehole every time and again, they pack as many water containers in their truck before queuing for their turn to fill them up.
Normally, they take up to two hours in the queue because residents in their area face acute water shortages but on the day when a Chronicle news crew visited, some residents from Mkoba 15 woke up around 1AM to fill their containers from their taps for the first time in two months.
So the queue on that day only had a handful of residents mainly from Mkoba 19.
Mr Moyo said they last had running water three months ago and even then, they would have it on Tuesdays and Thursdays only.
“I became friends with Matshazi after meeting him here many times while fetching water. We thought of using one vehicle to save fuel and time as we regularly come here to fetch water which is a challenge in this part of town,” he said.
Gweru residents recently filed an urgent chamber application at the Bulawayo High Court accusing the council of putting their lives at risk by failing to provide them with water especially now during the Covid-19 induced lockdown.
Residents argue that failure by the local authority to provide water is forcing them to flout the lockdown regulations thereby exposing them to coronavirus.
Gweru Residents and Ratepayers Association (GRRA) through their lawyer Mr Reginald Chidawanyika of Chitere-Chidawanyika Legal Practitioners, want the local authority to be compelled to provide water especially to high density suburbs.
The residents are arguing that they can only maintain personal hygiene and avoid crowding at boreholes if they have running water.
Social distancing and self-isolation are some of the measures that the public can implement to prevent the spread of coronavirus that has infected 31 and killed four people in Zimbabwe.
Constant washing of hands is also important in minimising the spread of the virus. Use of alcohol-based sanitisers, avoiding crowds as well as avoiding hugging or shaking hands are also recommended in fighting Covid-19.
Of all the residents at the borehole when Chronicle visited, none had a hand sanitiser on them.
Mr Moyo said it is impossible to follow such rules and regulations since residents queuing for water come from different backgrounds.
“I’ve been at this borehole for the past 30 minutes. Today’s queue was short because residents in Mkoba 15 woke up with running water. But in Mkoba 19, we have dry taps and that’s why we’re here drawing water from this borehole. Here we mix, we rub against each other, we take turns to use the borehole to fetch water and no social distance is being implemented at all,” he said.
Mr Matshazi said because of the water challenges bedevilling them, they could not avoid crowds.
“I’m here at this borehole to fetch water and there’s no way I can avoid touching the borehole for water to come out. Women and children are all the more vulnerable as they have to fetch water during odd hours,” he said.
With Covid-19 now a reality in the country, residents have urged other private entities to complement Government efforts in the quest to curb the spread of the pandemic.
Gweru Mayor Councillor Josiah Makombe said the local authority had partnered with a non-governmental organisation to maintain boreholes in places that were affected by typhoid in 2018 including Mkoba 18, 19 and 20.
“Senga has been included because it’s highly populated. The same organisation donated water testing equipment. We’ll be testing to make sure that the water is safe. We need to drill more boreholes and we’re looking for public-private partnerships.
“We’re thinking of water kiosks so that we get something. We’re also battling with erratic electricity supplies that affect water availability. The city is battling with burst sewer pipes as well,” he said.
According to the latest council minutes, Acting Director of Engineering Services Mr Praymore Mhlanga said the local authority continues to face challenges in water production due to inadequate high-lift pumps and power outages at Gwenhoro Dam. He said efforts to engage Zesa were underway.
The year 2018 saw minimum inflows into Gwenhoro Dam forcing council moved to Amapongobwe Dam, which is dwindling at an alarming rate since both dams did not receive significant water inflows this past rainy season.
Online Reporter