Residents irked by proposed BCC billing system

Residents have bemoaned the city council’s proposed water pre-paid billing system that will require residents to pay for water that will be allocated according to the payment made by each house hold. The city council has tabled this proposal in spite of the fact that the majority of residents earn paltry salaries and will not be able to afford to pay for water that will sustain them for the rest of the month. Child headed families and households run by elderly citizens will not have it easy as they do not have dependable sources of income. BPRA urges the city council to consider the less privileged when crafting policies.

Meanwhile, Cowdray Park and Emganwini residents have gone for more than ten years without electricity connection while others still do not have access to water and other sanitary facilities. When the Bulawayo City Council (BCC) consulted Cowdray Park and Emganwini residents on the introduction of prepaid meters most residents shunned the proposition. The reaction was mainly brought by the service providers’ failure to meet the needs of the people over the past years. Residents said that they will not be flattered by pilot projects that are set to hoodwink them. They called upon BCC to instead ensure that the whole city has access to clean water and sanitary facilities.