THE ongoing dispute between the Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa) and Gwanda town council that has seen residents of the Matabeleland South capital going for days without water is unnecessary.
Zinwa was forced to restore water supplies in the town early this week after police threatened to arrest Umzingwane Catchment manager Engineer Tommy Rosen for defying a High Court order.
The court order bars the water authority from disconnecting supplies to the town even when council owes Zinwa $6 million.
According to the order, Gwanda council is obliged to pay Zinwa 70% of the money it collects from water sales.
Zinwa argues that council has been failing to meet its end of the bargain, hence the move to cut supplies to Gwanda.
The water authority has a valid argument that it cannot subsidise the town’s water supplies with what it collects from other customers as is the case now.
Zinwa had resorted to water rationing to the town that started on November 10 and this saw some areas going without water for prolonged periods.
The war between the Zanu PF-dominated council and the water authority is bound to be fought in the courts once again after Zinwa indicated that it was consulting its legal advisors. How the two parties solve their disputes is not very important at this stage.
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However, what is worrying is council’s apparent reluctance to ensure uninterrupted supply of water to the town.
The local authority should show commitment that it is willing to settle the Zinwa debt by paying the amounts prescribed in the High Court order.
Gwanda council has been in the news lately for going for months without paying its workers and this has been attributed to cash flow problems.
The problems council is having with Zinwa are a symptom of a serious problem and the government should be paying close attention to developments there.
Frequent water shortages could eventually lead to an outbreak of diseases in the town and the government would have to take the blame for not acting when it was obvious the local authority is in distress.
