Gwanda Residents demand MPs to act on water supply

Residents of Gwanda are demanding the three members of Parliament and a senator resident in the town to "come to life" and sort out the town's service delivery issues.

The town of Gwanda is residence to the three Gwanda Constituencies members of parliament all ZANU PF and one MDC senator but according to residents the parliamentarians all appear to be turning a blind eye to the service delivery issues concerning the town.

The Minister of Provincial Affairs and Resident Minister of Matabeleland South Mr Abednico Ncube is the MP for Gwanda South and resides in the upmarket Jacaranda Suburb so is Gwanda North MP Madodana Sibanda.

Gwanda Central MP Mr Edison Gumbo resides at the town centre's Suburban residential area. Ms Joyce Ndlovu the MDC Ncube senator resides at Pakama Township but all the legislators have remained quiet as the Municipality fails to deliver basic services like provision of water.

In the run up to the elections Gumbo was seen running all over town using his own vehicles to tow water bowser delivering water to residential areas that have not had regular water supply for months now. One of his vehicles was spotted recently drawing water in a small bowser from the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (ZINWA) treatment plant, where other people are denied entry, only enough for his house hold use.

One resident also claims that similar water bowser errands have been seen ferrying water to Sibanda and Ncube's house in Jacaranda and to other senior ZANU PF and government officials' houses and business areas while the rest of the town runs dry.

Downtown in the High Density area, senator Joyce Ndlovu's children were spotted jostling to buy water with some "privileged" residents at a church borehole where water was being sold for $2 per 100 litres.

According to residents these are signs that the MPs are not at all concerned about tackling council head on to solve the town's water woes.

"It is shocking that the MPs are just dead silent about the water situation in the town and they are content with finding alternatives to comfort their families and not worried about the rest of us," said one resident a Mr Siphosami Ndlovu of Pakama Township.

Another resident Mr Mthokozisi Tshili said that the way things are done in Gwanda its unbelievable that it is home to four parliamentarians who choose to be quiet about the whole thing.

"Am shocked to hear that we have four parliamentarians in Gwanda town who are just quiet when council fails to provide us services like water, public lighting, sewage and refuse collection. Why are they so quiet? Are their toilets filling up with k*** like ours or they use toilets in Harare?"

The town of Gwanda has been battling with service provision especially water supply since August last year which has left a lot of problems for the residents including risks of a cholera out break. Council appears to be out of sorts on how to solve the problems an issue which higher authorities like MPs and ministers are expected to take over.

Spokesperson for the Gwanda Residents Association Mr Bekezela Maduma Fuzwayo agreed with the residents that the MPs by now are expected to have come into the service delivery issues of council particularly water provision.

"The people are very right. We are told that the issue of Gwanda's water problems is an inter ministerial administrative problem between ZINWA (Ministry of Water) Council (Ministry of Local Government) and the courts (Ministry of Justice) so if there is a standstill at these levels then the Minister for Provincial Affairs as the President's eye in the province is somehow expected to intervene and bring the feuding Ministries to a table and solve the issue. If you read the Hansard MPs from other areas are fighting parliament and Ministries to enforce service deliveries in their areas but our MPs are quiet in Parliament about the water situation in Gwanda," said Maduma Fuzwayo.

"Do they expect Chinotimba from Buhera to forget about his area and talk about the Gwanda water problems? In our dreams. If they are scared to speak we are not afraid to write to Chinotimba and ask him to speak for us then," he added.