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Councillor Knowledge Ndlovu

Richard Muponde, Gwanda Correspondent
GWANDA council, residents’ associations, civic groups and churches have said they will support the takeover of the water treatment plant from Zinwa when they meet a commission appointed to assess the town’s capacity to run the facility.

A seven member commission was appointed last week by the Minister of Environment, Water and Climate, Cde Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri to assess Gwanda municipality’s capacity to run the water treatment plant.

Zinwa and the town fathers have a long standing dispute, with the water authority saying council owes it $10 million for water while the municipality insists that it owes nothing more than $3 million.

During a stakeholders’ meeting held yesterday at council chambers participants agreed to speak with one voice for the water plant to be officially handed over to the municipality.

Gwanda Residents’ Association treasurer, Mr Fungai Mpofu said the commission should be made fully aware of the town’s capacity to run its own water affairs without Zinwa.

“We are ever ready because the capacity is there. I remember council was the one which reacted to water bursts over night when Zinwa engineers are camped in Colleen Bawn. These engineers too are not for our town only but the whole Gwanda district. Council ended up doing the job itself even replacing burst pipes and charging Zinwa nothing,” said Mr Mpofu.

Former Gwanda deputy mayor, Alderman Petros Mukwena said the position which council has taken was legally correct. “There are national laws that empower council to run and control its water affairs,” said Ald Mukwena.

Gwanda mayor, Councillor Knowledge Ndlovu said:

“We don’t politicise water, it’s a people’s right. Right now the hours they are rationing water up to 12 has made the situation worse contrary to what Zinwa is saying that things have improved. Go to the suburbs and show me where water is coming out since this rationing regime came into place. They should just remove it and this has nothing to do with the coming of the commission but a reality on the ground. People need water before the outbreak of diseases,” said Clr Ndlovu.

Zinwa last week accused Gwanda council of politicising the water issue and trying to sway the commission.

@richardmuponde