Fact Check: Are Pumula residents facing water shortages due to low pressure?
Claim: Bulawayo Ward 27 Councillor, Alderman Siboniso Khumalo says Pumula residents do not receive adequate water supplies due to low pressure.
Source: Alderman Siboniso Khumalo said this at a full council meeting held on 4 September 2019, in response to an inquiry by Ward 1 councillor Mlandu Ncube who had asked why some residents in the city were experiencing water shortages when the local authority had suspended its water-shedding schedule.
Verdict: True. Pumula residents in Pumula South, parts of Pumula East and Pelandaba West experience relatively low water pressure. The low pressure is largely due to an inadequate pipeline size which is not able to sustain the demand from the suburb and surrounding areas.
The City of Bulawayo is currently implementing the Bulawayo Water and Sewerage Services Improvement Project (BWSSIP). Under BWSSIP, the City is implementing the Mains Upgrading, Mains Renewal, and Bulk and Domestic Meter Replacement project aimed at upgrading water mains and pipelines in the areas fed by the Magwegwe and Criterion Reservoirs.
The project will involve the renewal of main pipelines in the Pumula area.
At the present moment, Council is working on excavation for the upgrading of mains and pipelines in Pumula.ย