National

‘It’s a nightmare’: Victoria Falls residents endure two months without water

Published

3 years ago

September 29, 2022

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

Some Victoria Falls residents are resorting to recycling water for household chores due to prolonged water shortages that started worsening two months ago.

Victoria Falls, which lies on the banks of the mighty Zambezi River, has been experiencing perennial water shortages due to the local authority’s limited pumping and reticulation system.

The most affected areas are high density suburbs of Mfelandawonye, Garikai, BC847, Mkhosana and Chinotimba.

“To flush the toilets, we now use water that would’ve been used to wash the plates or for laundry and at times we bath once a day or never because we have no other means of getting water,” said a Mfelandawonye.

Residents said the situation has forced them to forego daily bathing even for school going children.

“We spend days without bathing and even our children go to school without bathing yet the bill for water continues to go up,” the resident added.

“Our tapes are always open and we risk our lives every night to check for water at night as elephants will be roaming around our houses while hyenas will also be scavenging for food in the bins.

“It is not safe and the council seems not to understand our plea.”

Another resident from the same area said what made her situation worse was that she had a burden of looking after young children and a disabled person.

“We have gone for two months without water, at times the water comes at night for a short while and that allows us to fill one bucket before the taps run dry again,”she said.

“As women, the challenge that we face is that of failing to clean our houses, washing clothes and even looking after the children.

“I live with a disabled elderly person, and he can’t relieve himself in the bush so all the water that we use after washing the plates or clothes we use to flush the toilet and that has made our living a nightmare.”

Another disabled resident, who identified himself as Chipepura, said the water shortages had seriously affected his way of life.

“With my condition I cannot go and relieve myself in the bush and I have no means to get drinking water,” Chipepura said.

“I rely on my neighbours to assist me. So our plea is for council to consider disabled people like us and they should treat Mfelandawonye residents the same way as other people are being treated.”

Council blamed the prolonged water shortages on rising demand in summer.

“During the dry season water demand rises above supply hence there are critical water shortages,” council said.

“The council has a water sanitation and hygiene programme to address (the problems) holistically.”

However, the Victoria Falls Combined Residents Association blamed the water crisis on alleged mismanagement of funds and corruption in the local authority.

Residents recently submitted a petition to government ministries and speaker of Parliament Jacob Mudenda asking them to investigate the corruption allegations against council.

Victoria Falls ratepayers also boycotted council’s recent 2023 budget consultations in protest against the alleged corruption.

National

Ranger killed by elephant in Kariba

Published

3 weeks ago

March 14, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY NOKUTHABA DLAMINI

A 62-year-old ranger, Josphat Mandishara, was tragically killed by an elephant in Kariba yesterday.

Mandishara, who worked for the Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks), was on patrol in the Gatche-gatche area with fellow rangers and police officers.

At around 10 pm, Mandishara returned to the harbor where their boat was docked, and that’s when he encountered the elephant. The elephant charged at him, causing fatal injuries. His colleagues were nearby, resupplying at the Gatche-gatche Irrigation Scheme.

Mandishara’s body was taken to Kariba District Hospital for a post-mortem, and the incident was reported to the police.

ZimParks has sent a team to manage the problem elephant and prevent similar incidents in the future.

The Director General of ZimParks, Prof. Edson Gandiwa, and his team have sent condolences to Mandishara’s family, friends, and colleagues. Mandishara will be remembered for his dedication to wildlife conservation in Zimbabwe.

National

ZIMRA customs officer appears in court for criminal abuse of office

Published

2 months ago

February 3, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY STAFF REPORTER

A Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) customs officer, Phillip Kuvenga, has been accused of criminal abuse of office for allegedly assisting in the importation of banned motor vehicles.

Kuvenga, 28, who is stationed at Victoria Falls, allegedly received documents from clients, completed valuation sheets, and carried out the valuation process. However, he is accused of endorsing different chassis numbers to deceive his supervisors during the validation and approval process.

After obtaining approval, Kuvenga would capture the correct chassis numbers in the ASYCUDA World System. He would then alter or replace the documents submitted earlier to his supervisors.

The offense came to light when a motor vehicle that had not yet arrived in Zimbabwe was found to have been already registered. A thorough check by ZIMRA led to Kuvenga’s arrest.

Kuvenga appeared in court on February 1, where he was denied bail by Magistrate Gift Manyka. He is expected to appear in court again today for another bail hearing.

National

Retailers send Mnangagwa SOS as shops continue shutting down over operational woes

Published

2 months ago

January 27, 2025

VicFallsLive

BY ZIMLIVE

The Confederation of Zimbabwe Retailers (CZR) has implored President Emmerson Mnangagwa to intervene and save the sector which has seen various formal retail and wholesale businesses closing shop countrywide due to operational challenges.

In a statement on Sunday, CZR president Denford Mutashu said the continued closure of formal retail and wholesale businesses is a direct consequence of the tough economic environment that has consistently failed to support formalised sector players who face stiff competition from informal businesses and vendors the majority of whom have no tax obligations to deal with.

Mutashu said his association was concerned that authorities continue to downplay the crisis.

“The recent closure of several outlets under the N. Richards Group, coupled with Spar Zimbabwe’s painful decision to shut down Queensdale Spar, Choppies Zimbabwe’s exit from the market, and Mahommed Mussa’s significant reduction of shop space by 60%, highlights the growing crisis.

“As the representative association for these and other brands, CZR is alarmed that while formal businesses face enormous challenges, the authorities continue to present a different picture of the operating environment,” he said.

Given the situation, Mutashu said, only President Mnangagwa can rescue the troubled sector.

“CZR therefore calls for urgent intervention from His Excellency, President Emmerson Dambudzo Mnangagwa, to rescue what remains of the formalized retail and wholesale sector,” said Mutashu.

He said the sector was in urgent need of rescue.

“While CZR acknowledges the continued support from the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, it is clear that the root causes of these challenges are fiscal and monetary in nature. These require urgent and decisive action to ensure the survival of formal businesses.

“CZR therefore appeals to the Presidium to prioritize interventions aimed at saving jobs and mitigating the ongoing wave of shop closures and retrenchments,” he said.