By Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association|While some of the key messages around the preventative measures against COVID-19  has been the urging of people to wash they hands regularly with water and soap, it is unfortunate that Bulawayo residents have now gone for 5 days without water. This comes after the Bulawayo  City Council decided to go ahead with a water rehabilitation project which has resulted in the cutting of water supply to the residents of Bulawayo as from Saturday the 21st of March 2020 till today.

As Bulawayo Progressive Residents Association (BPRA) we are deeply concerned by the stance taken by Bulawayo City Council to go ahead with the rehabilitation works in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and then failing to finish the rehabilitation works on time resulting in the residents of Bulawayo going for 5 days without water.

Yesterday on the 24th of March 2020 Bulawayo City Council released a statement and deceived residents into believing that they would have their water supply back by the end of the day. Areas such as Emakhandeni, Magwegwe, Cowdray Park and eNtumbane which were cited as some of the first areas to have the water supply reinstated first have still not received any water.

What the Bulawayo City Council has done for the past 5 days and counting is exposing people to heightened risks of contracting the COVID-19  virus as people have gone for days without water thereby inhibiting them from constantly washing their hands. Instead of complying with the advice to social distancing and self isolation, residents have now been forced to leave their homes and gather around communal boreholes as they wait for their turn to fetch water thereby increasing their risk of coming into contact with the COVID-19 virus.

We are hereby calling on the Bulawayo City Council to reinstate water supply to the residents of Bulawayo and call for the suspension of the Bulawayo Sewer Service Improvement and Water Project (BSSIWP) until further notice.