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Bulawayo water woes set to ease
Movement for Democratic Change
November 07, 2012

The Mtshabezi-Umzingwane water project set to ease a century old Bulawayo water problem is now complete. The Minister of Water Resources Development and Management Hon Sipepa NKomo confirmed.

The project awaits approval from Engineers based in South Africa who are yet to inspect the whole project before water can be pumped into the city of Bulawayo.

The MDC hails Hon Sipepa Nkomo for spearheading this project which was dogged by ups and downs owing to political bickering from Zanu PF after failing to solve perennial water shortages experienced by the city in three decades.

The completion of the Mtshabezi-Umzingwane water pipeline is a major boost to the ailing city which has been dogged by massive relocation of industries as companies shunned the city for lack of water. The project which has taken two years will be commissioned after the engineers from South Africa have finished the inspection process.

The MDC therefore assures all residents in Bulawayo of its unequivocal support of the resuscitation of the city once dubbed the industrial hub of Bulawayo. The majority of people in Bulawayo were at the risk of contracting various water borne diseases owing to unsafe water storage practices devised by people to avert the water shortages in homes.

Prime Minister Tsvangirai recently took a swipe at the state procurement board for dragging its feet in awarding tenders to companies that were going to install the pumps. The Prime Minister is moved by the water situation in the city and has urged all parties to work together and expeditiously finish the project which has undermined development in the region.

The Mtshabezi-Umzingwane water project took two years to complete at the instigation of MDC after the project was wrested from the clutches of ZANU PF and its functionaries such as Dumiso Dabengwa after failing to make progress in addressing the water crisis bedeviling the city for years. This led to tightening of water taps, simultaneous flushing of toilets and untold suffering to the Bulawayo residents who spend most of the time jostling at boreholes dotted around the city.

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