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Executive mayor Dowelani Nenguda, photographed at the numerous illegal water connections at a gravity line from the Mutshedzi Dam to Mavhoi village.

Illegal connections of water threaten service delivery

 

Vandalism of water resources and illegal connections are causing a serious challenge to service delivery in Vhembe.

Hardly two weeks after being sworn in, Vhembe’s new executive mayor, Cllr Dowelani Nenguda, was shocked after discovering the challenges caused by community members who vandalize water resources and illegally connect pipes to deliver water to their homes.

At Ha-Raliphaswa village, Nenguda was taken to a site where community members had illegally connected more than 50 pipes onto a gravity line from the Mutshedzi Dam to Mavhoyi village.

Some of the people who are working at Mutshedzi said they had tried to remove the illegally connected pipes at Raliphaswa on several occasions, with no luck. “We have been here with the police on more than one occasion.  At first, when we removed the pipes, community members would come and reconnect them as soon as we left.  There were occasions where some of the community members would tell us that we were wasting our time as they were going reconnect them.”

He added that when they went back the following day, “we would find the illegal pipes connected again.  As times goes, we would receive verbal threats from angry community members who would also threaten to attack us right in front of police officers,” explained one of the people who work at the Mutshedzi water project.

Even elderly people and small children would also take part in the attack of people who would try to remove the illegally connected pipes.

“We have given up on fighting illegally connected pipes in this area.  The last time we came here, the police officers who were escorting us advised us to run away after realizing that we were outnumbered by a group of angry community members who were coming in our direction,” said another person who works at the Mutshedzi water project.

Nenguda was left disturbed by the impact of illegal connections after he was taken to Ramavhoya and Matidza villages where more illegal connections of water were exposed to him.

“This is very worrying.  My major concern is that these illegal connections are affecting our efforts to deliver water to our people.  As you can see, many people are not accessing clean water in their areas, because our pipes have been tampered with along the way.

He appealed to the community to respect the water resources and to stop vandalism.  “My major concern is that these illegal connections cause unnecessary protest marches by the community, who are expecting water from us.  Illegal connections also force us to spend double the money we budget.  I am calling on all community members to help us fight illegal connections of water, so that our people can get water,” said Nenguda.

 

 

Date:16 June 2019

By: Ndivhuwo Musetha

Read: 1069

 

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