Call for BCC to stick to water rationing schedule

TENDAI BHEBE IN BULAWAYO 

The Bulawayo City Council (BCC) has been urged to stick to its water-shedding timetable to avoid inconveniencing residents and businesses.

The BCC in June introduced a 24-hour water shedding timetable in June. Recently, it started implementing a 72-hour weekly water shedding programme.

However, the suburbs are now experiencing supply cuts outside the schedule.

“I think what is key is to stick to our schedule that we issue out to the residents. If we say we will close on Monday and open on Wednesday let it be so,” Bulawayo councillor and deputy mayor, Mlandu Ncube said.

He said the city was facing a “very serious issue”.

“I don’t want to say it’s sabotage. We need to find it out. I think what is key is that Bulawayo residents must get clean water all the time.  And we must manage the way we give them water,” Ncube said.

He said BCC could not afford to lie to residents.

“Things are not going well with the current water situation. There is a shortage of water and if we misuse the little that we have we might end up with no water in the city at all,” Ncube said.

Bulawayo draws water from Inyakuni, Insiza, Upper Ncema, Lower Ncema, Mtshabezi and Umzingwane dams as well as Nyamandlovu and Epping Forest aquifers.

The local authority has further put in place relief measures like bowsers to high lying areas where water might take longer to be accessed.

Bulawayo Town clerk Christopher Dube said the Magwegwe Reservoir has reached a critical level of nine feet and supplies have been shut off for all residential areas fed from the reservoir.

The areas affected are Cowdray Park, Emakhandeni and Gwabalanda.

Thembelani Dube, the Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association secretary for administration said water shortages in Bulawayo are a prolonged problem resulting in severe water shedding, urging the government to speed up the construction of the Gwayi Shangani Dam so that the water can be connected and help the residents in Bulawayo.

“The challenge is that the population of Bulawayo has increased and the dams that supply Bulawayo are no longer able to supply the population that is there,” he said.