Roseline Mutare
Gweru – The Gweru Residents and Ratepayers Association (GRRA) has attributed the water shortages hitting the city to the frequent power outages, which have affected Gwenoro water works’ capacity to pump the precious liquid to residents.
GRRA executive director Cornilia Selipiwe, in an interview with The Midweek Watch said that the load shedding being experienced across the country had exacerbated the water supply challenges in the city.
“The power outages have made it difficult for council to pump enough water to all areas of the city, resulting in shortages and erratic supply,” said Selipiwe.
He also added that the water shortages are also being exacerbated by the challenges at the White Waters supply station, which is experiencing problems with its sand filters and the local authority is working on repairing them.
Meanwhile, residents of Riverside suburb in Gweru are up in arms over the prolonged water shortages which have been bedeviling the area for years now without any solution being proffered.
The situation has become so dire that residents have resorted to using sanitary lanes and bushes to relieve themselves, sparking fears of cholera outbreak.
“We are living in fear of contracting diseases like cholera and typhoid due to the unhygienic conditions we are being forced to live in,” said Sithembile Ncube, a resident of Riverside.
Another resident, Khumbulani Nkomo, expressed frustration at the city council’s failure to provide reliable water supply.
“We are tired of living without water. It is a basic human right, and we demand that the city council do something about it,” he said.
Nokuthula Sibanda, said the water shortages were taking a toll on her family’s health and well-being.
“My children are always falling sick due to the unhygienic conditions we are living in. I fear for their health and well-being,” said Sibanda.
In response to the complaints, Gweru Mayor Martin Chivhoko attributed the water shortages to power outages at the Gwenoro water works.
“We are having serious power outages at Gwenoro water works, which has resulted in the water shortages being experienced in Riverside and other suburbs,” Chivhoko said.
Efforts by The Midweek Watch to get a comment from the Zimbabwe Electricity Transmission and Distribution Company (ZETDC) Southern Division Regional Manager, Engineer Gibson Kasipo were fruitless as he was not picking up calls and not replying messages sent on whatsapp.
