Kwale residents celebrate the opening of a new water point. [Photo/File]
Hundreds of residents in Matuga Sub-county, Kwale County today poured into the streets to protest persistent water shortage with a call for an immediate solution to the crisis now in its second month.
The residents marched peacefully from Kwale Baraza Park while chanting slogans and waving placards before finally storming the Kwale Water and Sewerage Company offices where they demanded to be addressed by the firm’s officials.
The demonstration was led by Waa-Ngo’mbeni Ward Representative, Mwinyi Mwasera and Nominated MCA Ms. Fatuma Masito, who said the crisis had persisted for far too long hence subjecting residents to untold suffering.
Mwasera said residents have been without water despite paying their bills and wondered where the money goes since the shortage has been blamed on power disconnection to pumping stations due to unpaid power bills.
In a memorandum read out on behalf of the protesters by Abdullah Hamisi on Wednesday, the residents demanded the immediate resignation of the company’s management team for incompetence and a thorough audit be done.
“Consumers cannot be paying bills while the company fails to clear power bills leading to a perennial water problem,” said Hamisi.
The residents also called for the immediate removal of the company’s Board of Directors claiming its term of office expired in June last year and was thus in office illegally.
They also want issues of illegal connections, water leakages, metering and billing systems streamlined for efficiency.Of concern also is the strained relationship between the company and the Coast Water Service Board which supplies the former with water.
The two organizations have been at loggerheads over frequent cutting off of the water supply due to outstanding bills for services rendered by the board which is owed Sh53million.
Addressing the protesters, acting County Executive for Water, Hemed Mwabuzo admitted there is a water shortage in several parts of the county which he blamed partly on massive destruction of water infrastructure by floods.
“The company has been struggling for quite some time to rehabilitate the affected infrastructure with some of them successfully done,” said Mwabuzo who had a difficult time explaining himself amidst heckling from the agitated crowd.
The CEC said the supply will be restored to all the affected areas by this Friday since an outstanding Sh10.5million bill owed to Kenya Power has been cleared while another Sh.15million will be paid to Coast Water Company.