Bulawayo (New Ziana)-Some unscrupulous companies and individuals in Bulawayo are taking advantage of the acute water shortages the city is facing to vandalise pipes and valves so they can illegally harvest the precious liquid for resale to desperate residents.
Bulawayo is grappling with acute water shortages, prompting the local authority to implement a stringent 120-hour water-shedding program each week, which means residents receive water only two days a week.
The El Niño-induced drought linked to climate change has exacerbated the situation leading to a significant decline in inflows into the city’s supply dams.
As water levels in major dams continue to drop, the local authority is struggling to maintain the water schedule, with some areas going as long as a month without supplies.
The dire situation has led some unscrupulous companies and individuals to vandalise water infrastructure to collect free water for resale, particularly targeting residents in high-density areas, where they are selling 20 litres for $2 and 2 500 litres for $25 and “There are companies and individuals who are vandalising pipes and valves to collect council clean water for resale.
Their actions negatively affect the large population of residents in the city,” mayor David Coltart stated. Coltart called on the central government to assist his council by providing security for its water infrastructure.
“We appeal to the central government to help secure the city’s water infrastructure. Those found damaging council property should be arrested and charged with a criminal offence,” he said.
He also urged Parliament to grant arresting powers to municipal police and establish municipal courts to address such criminal activities effectively.
Coltart also expressed concern about the increase in illegal vendors in the city despite the recent allocation of designated vendor marts by the local authority in some areas. “We have noted with concern the increasing number of illegal vendors operating from pavements in undesignated areas,” he said.
While acknowledging the economic hardships many residents are facing, Coltart emphasised that these challenges do not justify lawlessness. Council recently designated specific sites across the city for vendors to operate from legally, yet many continue to prefer the streets.
Coltart also noted the resurgence of illegal transporters, commonly known as “Mishikashika,” in the Central Business District (CBD), where they disrupt traffic through picking and dropping passengers at undesignated locations.
He said the illegal operators undermine the recently established Egodini Mall commuter bus terminus, which reopened after an eight-year closure.
“We call upon the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) to enforce relevant statutes and by-laws effectively. An orderly city attracts investments. It’s high time we restore the city to its former glory of law and order,” he said.
New Ziana
