COMMENT: Councils should prioritize service delivery matters

Over the past week or so the water situation in Masvingo province has been so poor with dry taps in most if not all residential areas let alone the Central Business District (CBD). Refuse collection on the other hand has been another cause for concern as uncollected refuse has become an eyesore on most streets in both the CBD and residential areas.
Both situations present a ticking health bomb to residents and thus local authorities should play their role to address the situation as a matter of urgency. In some cases when water is made available in the residential areas, it would be muddy and brown and one would wonder if it is ever safe at all to consume such water or people would risk their health by using the water.
Despite having some few boreholes scattered in some residential areas, they are just few to serve the population in respective areas. In Rujeko high density suburb, flowing streams of treated water have been noticed at times and that may simply point to broken down infrastructure but for how long shall the city be served with such poor infrastructure.
Council management should find everlasting solutions to this issue of water which has become a perennial feature and only residents suffer as they are always at the receiving end of such problems.
Barely a year ago Masvingo city council was accused of pumping half-treated water to residents and some time mid-year the Engineer responsible was relieved of his duties with incompetence being cited as the reason behind the dismissal. Now it’s not even a full year after the dismissal of the engineer, the water situation is not improving either as the local authority seems to be haunted by the same ghost that characterized acute water shortages in the previous years.
With residents fighting tooth and nail to settle the water bills that have gone up since the approval of the 2022 budget, council should be considerate enough and ensure ratepayers are given value for their hard earned money and the ultimate prize would be a cleaner environment and clear water available at most times.
To curb the proliferation of illegal dumpsites that are sprouting as residents seek to rid their homes of uncollected garbage, council should seek an alternative form of transport to use in collecting solid waste before illegal dumpsites grow to unprecedented levels in the residential areas.
As a matter of urgency, council must prioritize the welfare of residents by ensuring efficient service delivery is made available and thus employing proper liquid and solid waste management practices while at the same time clean water provision would also be a requirement.
Gone should be the days in which cheap politicking is put in play to prove the worthiness of political parties as that won’t solve matters but only affect residents.