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Kasukuwere
faces arrest
Richard Muponde, Southern Eye
November 26, 2013
http://www.southerneye.co.zw/2013/11/26/kasukuwere-faces-arrest/
Environment,
Water and Climate minister Saviour Kasukuwere faces arrest while
three Zimbabwe National Water Authority (Zinwa) officials, who include
the chief executive officer (CEO) and his two subordinates, face
prolonged incarceration for disconnecting water to Gwanda Town Council
in disregard of a High Court order barring them from doing so without
court authority.
Zinwa disconnected
water to the Gwanda local authority two weeks ago over an unpaid
debt of $5 million seriously starving the town of the precious liquid
forcing residents to fetch water from unprotected sources such as
the Mtshabezi River.
The non-availability
of water also seriously exposed residents to disease outbreak as
they were using nearby bushes to relieve themselves since they could
not flash their toilets.
On August 26
2011 Bulawayo High Court judge Justice Nicholas Ndou barred Zinwa
from disconnecting water to the local authority.
The order was
given by consent of Zinwa and Gwanda Town Council after the local
authority had approached the court when Zinwa indicated that it
wanted to indefinitely disconnect water to the town.
It was then
agreed that council would remit 70% of its collection of monthly
water bills to Zinwa, but in the event of a breach of the agreement,
the parties would approach the High Court for recourse.
However, it
was not disputed that the local authority defaulted remitting money
to Zinwa after the agreement, which prompted Zinwa to disconnect
water on November 7, albeit without a court order as was ordered
by Justice Ndou.
The Gwanda Town
Council went to court on Thursday seeking a contempt of court order
against Kasukuwere as the minister responsible and Zinwa officials.
Zinwa and its
CEO, the Umzingwane Catchment area manager Tonny Rosen, Umzingwane
Water Supplies manager Stanley Nazombe and Kasukuwere are cited
as respondents.
The order being
sought reads: “The second (Zinwa) and fifth (Kasukuwere) respondents
are in contempt of (a) court order granted by (the) High Court issued
undercover of case number HC2333/11 of the 26th of August 2011.
“First
(Zinwa CEO), third (Rosen) and fourth (Nazombe) respondents are
in contempt of court for failing to reconnect applicant’s
water supply.
“The first,
third and fourth respondents be kept in custody until such a time
that first, second, third and (EFZ) fourth respondents comply with
the court order issued under HC23331/11 by this honourable court.
Second respondent, be and hereby ordered to pay a fine of $1 000
for each day that they fail to reconnect water supply to the applicant
from the date of granting this order to the day that second respondent
reconnects water supply to applicant.”
In his founding
affidavit filed by lawyers, Phulu and Ncube Legal Practitioners,
Gwanda town clerk Gilbert Mlilo said Zinwa disconnects water at
4pm until 8am the following day leaving the town with a shortfall
of 7 600 cubic metres against a daily consumption of 10 000 cubic
metres.
The situation,
Mlilo said, has left the whole of Gwanda virtually without water,
with the Gwanda Provincial Hospital being the worst affected.
Normal water
supplies were only restored to Gwanda last Friday after Transport
minister Obert Mpofu paid $46 000 to Zinwa on behalf of council.
Zinwa had indicated
that it would only restore supplies if council paid $46 000 towards
servicing its debt of $5 million.
Council then
resolved to sell a commercial stand worth $90 000 to Mpofu and the
$46 000 he directly paid into the Zinwa account is the deposit for
the stand.
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