Makutula villagers in Tjefunye, Tsholotsho, have appealed to non-governmental organisations along with International organisations to assist them with boreholes to alleviate the water woes in the area.
The villagers walk about five kilometres to collect water from Manzamnyama river for both household use and their livestock.
Speaking to CITE, Makutula village head Obert Muda said Manzamnyama river is far from the village and people are forced to travel long distances to get the precious liquid.
The headman revealed that they have since engaged their Member of Parliament Zenzo Sibanda and nothing much has been done.
Sikhangezile Ndlovu, another villager said the previous councillor banned them from collecting water from the nearby school and promised to sink boreholes for them.
Another villager said they have been experiencing water shortages in the are for a few years now.
Contacted for comment, Ward 7 councillor Pios Ncube said the issue was raised at a recent council meeting and they are working on getting a few boreholes drilled in the area to ease the situation.
“The water issue was raised on Wednesday during the council meeting last week and we are planning on drilling at least five boreholes for the whole of ward seven because Tsholotsho naturally has no water,” said Cllr Ncube.
Tsholotsho South MP Sibanda said the water challenges in the area are known and they have identified sites where the boreholes will be drilled but due to political issues the project is yet to be completed.
“The water challenges in Makutula, Nganunu, and Matshokoko are well known to all of us, we had pegged boreholes to be drilled in those villages but politics intervened and we failed to see it through,” said MP Sibanda.
He added that they are looking for donors who can come forward and assist them with the project.
“We are looking for people who can help us drill the boreholes so that people may be assisted because Tsholotsho is a very dry area and we had drilled some boreholes that have dried off,” he told CITE.
