KANYAMA residents have urged the Lusaka Water and Sewerage Company (LWSC) to provide safe water throughout the year to prevent cholera outbreaks in the future.
Following the cholera outbreak in Lusaka, LWSC suspended the selling of water at its communal taps in Kanyama, John Laing and Chibolya compounds to allow more people in these areas to access safe and clean drinking water for free during the period.
But the residents have demanded that people in the area should have access to safe water throughout the year, not just when there was an outbreak.
Steven Kaunda, a resident, commended LWSC for providing residents with free water during the time when the area was hit by cholera, but suggested that the company should continue to provide the service free of charge as most people could not afford to pay.
“We are so grateful for the water being offered to us free of charge, it’s a good thing they have done because we really needed this. But we would like to see these services continuing even when there is no cholera, most people here can’t manage to pay for water and rely on water from shallow wells,” Mr. Kaunda said.
Another resident, Mwitwa Katebe, observed that if people of Kanyama had access to clean water throughout the year, issues of cholera outbreak would be avoided.
Mr Katebe noted that poor drinking water was one of the major causes of cholera in the area.
“Poor drinking water is the major cause of cholera in Kanyama and if people had clean water in their homes, we wouldn’t have been talking about cholera.
“Certain diseases can be preventable, we have been crying for clean water for so many years and nobody would hear us out, but now that there is an outbreak that’s when they have realized how much we need water,” he said.
They want fee water?
It is supposed to be FREE water.
Find time to watch pipo of Botswana. They are traditional but very happy. Their opposition not as provocative as zambians.
True DOOM. But the problem we have in zambia is that political parties are formed out of frustration so leaders and their cadres are disgruntled from inception of their groupings. Its sad that zambian democracy is not a shining example anymore.
You are very right, my brother/sister. I always refer to that country when discussing certain issues and I personally think and believe Zambians can learn a lot from Tswana in many areas. For instance, during weekends almost all Tswana leave towns where they work and spend weekends in their home villages where they have built mansions and those mansions have facilities such as modern stoves, fridge/freezers(which are always stoked up with plenty food stuff), proper funiture, etc. Tswanas, surpassing South Africans have very high standards in almost everything despite their little education (they are massively improving on that, anyway). Tswana, despite their modern way of life are fully traditional. They do not even pretend to becoming or behaving like white people- no. They are just as…
They do not even pretend to becoming or behaving like white people- no. They are just as simple and natural as such. Zambians MUST learn from Tswanas.
NWASCO (actually all of us) should seriously address the issue of these shallow wells being dug at every residence. Almost every household in these burgeoning residential areas across the country keep their sh!t. The effect of this on the underground water systems will be disastrous on all of us soon.
And who will be paying for that free water?
..you see how a single letter can change the meaning of the sentence…even in the midst of plenty of clean water cholera can still be realised…keep your environment clean period…
…with sewer effluent spilling all over what do u expect…in a typical village clean water is a rear commodity but you hardly hear of cholera out break…
…sorry ….rare commodity…