Mbundane’s 10-year water crisis Blair toilets outside houses in Mbundane
Blair toilets outside houses in Mbundane

Blair toilets outside houses in Mbundane

Crystabel Chikayi
WITH a sheen of sweat on her back and more dripping down her face, a woman blows at a fire to keep it flaming in a small kitchen beside her blue, pretty looking suburban house.

The sun bakes her as she shuffles between the kitchen and the house.  Her face has been scorched by heat from both the fire and that of the sun.

She perseveres and continues with the cooking.

But, the stress has taken a toll on her – she now looks older than her age.

She epitomises the typical life of a woman in Mbundane, a suburb on the western outskirts of Bulawayo under Umguza District, which has gone for more than 10 years without running water.

“I was so excited when we finished building our house and it was time to move in sometime in 2006. We had done our calculations and discovered that it would be cheaper for us to live in our own house compared to renting,” said Mrs Sibongile Shava, a resident in the area.

“Our house is seven-roomed, with four bedrooms. I figured we only needed two bedrooms since we have two male children who can share a bedroom. The other two bedrooms could be rented out. We found people who were willing to rent the two rooms, but it was not for long. When months passed with no feedback concerning the establishment of water sources in the area, the people who were renting the rooms moved out in search of homes with running water.”

Her joy was short-lived.

Now, Mrs Shava thinks moving into her Mbundane house was at best, a fleeting drop of pleasure in an ocean of pain.

“With no live-in tenants, life here has become expensive as we have to buy water every day. The life I dreamt of and what I’m experiencing now are incomparable,” said Mrs Shava.

Mbundane suburb takes the form of a rural set-up and the stench from the Blair toilets located at a corner in the yard does not help the situation.

Mr Eliot Gumbo, another Mbundane resident said they survive by the grace of God.

“Lack of water means no flush system toilets so we’ve no choice but to use Blair toilets. The toilets are built facing our houses and that bothers me a lot – it’s unhygienic. In a rural set-up, the Blair toilets are built meters away from the house. The odour that comes from the toilet diffuses into the house and the kitchen, which is built next to the Blair toilet,” said Mr Gumbo.

A number of Mbundane residents buy water from plots in nearby Rangemore.

“We buy water for all domestic purposes. There are no community boreholes to turn to. The water we buy from the Rangemore plot owners costs 10 cents per 20 litres,” said Mr Gumbo.

He said they often face serious water challenges whenever there is no electricity in Rangemore and the boreholes there are not functional.

“Whenever we complain, those in authority often think we like to whine but that’s not the case. Life out here is difficult. Imagine a life where you have to buy water and transport it every single day,” said Mr Gumbo.

However, in order to mitigate the water shortage challenges in the area, some residents have resorted to erecting plastic tanks for water storage.

“Some bought water storage tanks to avoid having to push wheel barrows with water containers daily. The tanks are advantageous but they’re costly to maintain as you have to hire people to refill the tank from time to time. There’re people who usually drive around in lorries every morning selling water. On the lorry will be tanks and drums full of water, which is used to refill people’s water storage tanks. The water is sold for $10 per drum,” said Mrs Musa Sibanda, another resident in the area.

She said she spends $5 on water every week.

“When there’s no water, hygiene is compromised. Many people now live with dirt because of lack of water. You’ll find that some last washed their blankets eight to 10 years ago when they moved to this place. Buying water to wash blankets is a luxury to us,” said Mrs Sibanda.

During the rainy season, she said, less water is bought as they maximise on rain water harvesting.

“We can’t even afford to start vegetable gardens because that would be an added expense,” said Mrs Sibanda.

The water woes in Mbundane suburb might not be resolved any time soon as Umguza Rural District Council officials are non-committal to the plight of residents.

“A while back, there was confusion on whether Mbundane is under the Bulawayo City Council (BCC) or Umguza Rural District Council but it appears we’re under Umguza. The BCC once came to grade our roads but we never heard from them after that. We’ve often been told boreholes would be drilled in the area but nothing has happened in the last 10 years,” said Mrs Sibanda.

“We’d see news articles being written about Mbundane suburb and they would give us a glimmer of hope but still no help has come. In one of the articles, the BCC was promising to help Umguza by embarking on a project that would enable us to have tap water but nothing has happened since then.”

BCC senior public relations officer Mrs Nesisa Mpofu said Mbundane suburb is under the Umguza Rural District Council and could not shed more light on the situation.

@cchikayi

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