Mombasa residents to face acute water shortage

Mombasa residents might be faced with an acute water shortage, following a strike planned for next Monday by employees of a Mombasa Water firm.

The employees of Mombasa Water Supply and Sanitation Company have issued a one-week strike notice and promised to make good their threat if their grievances are not addressed in time.

They have warned the residents to brace themselves for hard times, as there will be no water services locally as a result of a clash with their employer.

The more than 200 employees have threatened to down their tools come February 24, if their management does not address five issues raised by them, including discriminatory promotions.

Through a Press statement released to The Standard yesterday, the employees accused the management of selectively upgrading other employees and leaving others out deliberately.

“We do not understand the kind of criteria used by the management in upgrading staff members, we feel some people are being favored,” argued one of the employees, adding that the move has impacted negatively on the morale of other workers.

Among other grievances, they raised an issue of pension remittances, saying that retired staff are languishing in poverty despite having worked for the company for years.

They also accused the management of dictatorial tendencies.

“There is no open dialogue and the management is not ready to listen to the people. We, therefore, call for the immediate exit of the MD since he does not give the staff a listening ear,” they added.

CEO Anthony Njaramba, however, said the employees were not honest and should come clean on what they really want from the management.

He argued that the Mombasa water employees are reluctant to have their performance appraised and are therefore coming up with the strike as a diversionary tactic.

Njaramba added that since getting into office as the MD, he made it his business to fight the water cartels, some of them the employees who have been making water shortage a nightmare to the people of Mombasa.

“Since I got into office, I have made so many positive changes, which are not being appreciated by the employees. 137 employees who were on acting basis have been permanently employed,” he added.

He also told The Standard that he had a programme aimed at upgrading the education of 120 employees, who have reached the level of Form Four, fully sponsored by the company.