Negligence in full flow as Machakos thirsts for water

Ideally, privatisation of water services is meant to ensure economic viability and efficiency. But while many of the companies formed by local authorities and meant to be autonomous have been doing a decent job, some have lapsed into clumsy management. This is at the expense of the consumer.

That is perhaps why complaints on water shortages have not dried up since the launch of this column in July 2008. And in most instances we are not talking about taps running dry for one or two days. Rather, it involves consumers enduring weeks, or even months, without water.

List of shame

The latest Water Service Provider in this infamous list is Machakos Water and Sewerage Company. After a shortage that has lasted close to two months, impatient residents have reportedly given the firm an ultimatum to restore supply.

JN, a resident, tells PointBlank she is forced to buy salty borehole water at considerable cost. Ironically, the company feels no shame billing her every month for services not provided.

PointBlank thinks this farce in Machakos must stop, Water Minister Charity Ngilu.

Untangling insecurity in Makongeni

Allegations by Kevin, a reader in Nairobi, that officers at Makongeni Police Station were abetting crime are fallacious and cannot go unchallenged, says Mr James Asami (City estate in the grip of crime, May 7).

"While Kevin may be right that Makongeni Estate has previously been a ‘hub of crime’ in the recent past, he vividly missed the point and ended up sharing his ignorance on the security status of the nearby Kaloleni Estate," says Asami.

He claims that contrary to Kevin’s assertion that cops should be transferred, the reign of senior officers at the station has seen a "drastic fall in criminal activities". Asami reads politics in the police-bashing, spearheaded by a civic leader with a "hidden agenda" and who has done little to genuinely tackle insecurity.

Asami considers security in Makongeni and Kaloleni to have improved so much that he can stroll in the middle of the night without fear, unlike in the past.

"Residents like Kevin should not be allowed to misinform the Commissioner of Police by personalising the war against crime for political expediency. In addition, corruption should not be entirely blamed on the police," he says.

　

Why Miritini merits attention

Writing on behalf of "bitter affected residents", Gerald Mutua in Miritini Estate, Mombasa, wonders why the municipal council has "blatantly denied us all services".

"Neighbouring estates receive services like road maintenance, garbage collection, street lighting, drainage repair, control of heavy commercial lorries parking and building supervision. So why has Miritini been ignored yet we also pay rates?" he asks.

Mutua claims his estate has only one "dilapidated and neglected" access road "which has the biggest water-filled pothole in East and Central Africa". He notes that the cause of the poor drainage is haphazard building of kiosks and blocked drainage. Allowing construction of houses on top of the sewerage system has also added to the mess.

"Last year a contractor patched up sections of the road, but after the long rains it has reverted to its poor condition," says Mutua.

He laments that matatus no longer go beyond the "man-made lake" on the road and private vehicles require regular repair.

"Town Clerk Tubman Otieno and Mayor Ahmed Mohdhar should act," says Mutua.