Members of the communities from Ramantsha, Gogobole and Tshiozwi who last saw drops of water dripping from their taps more than one month ago, have appealed to the Makhado Municipality to provide them with clean water.

The community members said that they are fed up with the thieves who stole the taps and forced them to get their water more than three kilometers away. One of the residents of Gogobole, Mr Azwifaneli Funyufunyu, stated that they were not satisfied with the service from the municipality. "We are only getting water from people who have boreholes and villagers are losing money every day, as they have to buy water," he said. He explained that those without transport had to pay more than R5 for 25 litres of water.

"If people cannot buy water from the people who have boreholes, they are forced to travel eight kilometers with a wheelbarrow to collect water at Ravele village," he said.

The chairperson of Ramantsha Civic Association, Mr Patrick Ramakgoma, said the civic and the headman were aware of the plight of the area. "We are still struggling for people to get water, because the people who steal the water taps are our children or residents. It is true that some of them are collecting water from Ravele with wheelbarrows, but we as civic are going to resolve this matter with the municipality."

When Mirror visited Gogobele, we found learners carrying water containers. The headmaster of Sukumani Kundani School, Vha-Musanda Vho-Ntanganedzeni Kutama, said that the shortage of water was affecting the smooth running of the school. He added that after school breaks, learners were always late, as they usually queue at a borehole. Kutama appealed to the community to refrain from vandalism.

In Tshikota, residents also complain about the shortage of water and they said that they pay for water and electricity. They appealed to the municipality to provide them with water. A resident, who did not want his name to be mentioned, said the municipality ignored residents when they reported the matter to the municipality. When Mirror visited Tshikota on Saturday, we found a water tanker delivering the water. The Makhado Municipality´s spokesperson, Mr Louis Bobodi, said that when the municipality receives a report, they usually open a case of theft. He appeals to the community members to refrain from vandalising water taps. He further said community members must report all the incidences of vandalizing of municipal property.