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The Amazing Mhlanga-Nyahuye
WASHINGTON – The Harare Residents Trust (HRT) has called on the Harare City Council to urgently address water supply issues as some locals say the source is unfit for domestic use.
Council communications manager Michael Chideme said the city’s water was safe for domestic use despite complaints from residents about its colour and rancid taste, NewsDay reported.
Chideme told the newspaper that the water was green in colour, had an odour and was safe to drink and met world-class standards
However, the Harare Residents Trust has refuted the claims as baseless, saying the committee has no scientific evidence to support their claims.
“Citizens and different stakeholders have consistently expressed reservations about the quality of Harare’s water, which means that the local authorities still have a lot of work to do to restore citizens’ confidence in the quality of the water,” the department said in a statement on Tuesday.
Precious Shumba, director of the Harare Residents Trust, said residents wanted the council to stop taking people for granted.
“They should try to understand that what they are trying to achieve from a public relations perspective will backfire because more residents are now more convinced than ever that something is not right. The Harare City Council is trying to hide something,” Shumba said.
He added that group members expressed concerns about water availability, suspicious green colour and rotten smell.
Responding to the concerns, Harare Mayor Bernard Manyeni said the city government was working to address residents’ concerns.
“Our goal, our real desire is that when we declare our water is safe and drinkable, we should be proud to say the truth and tell people the truth,” Manyeni said.
The mayor said he became aware of the concerns of Harare residents after receiving calls, emails and graphic messages about residents’ water use.
“As part of improving water supply, we have a responsibility and commitment to improve water quality because we don’t want to just supply water without ensuring quality. As we improve the supply and quantity of water, we want to ensure that the quality meets the expectations of residents,” Manyenyeni said.
HRT is encouraging Harare Water to engage with residents and explain the difficult situation in order to regain the trust of consumers.
They also urged the city to fix the billing system and ensure every household using municipal water has a functioning water meter.
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