By; Kamusiime Barnabas
KISORO; Batwa living behind Kisoro district headquarters in Mikingo village southern division in Kisoro municipality have resorted to use of Sewage water from Septic tanks behind the district’s health department offices.
The Batwa opted to breaking septic tanks after going for several weeks without water in their donated tanks after it got depleted due to a dry spell in Kisoro district since June.
Nyamihanda, a Mutwa Woman at Mikingo washes Clothes using sewage water
This is the second time in six years that Mikingo Batwa community is surviving on sewage water since 2016 when they also vandalized the same septic tanks.
Speaking to voice of Muhabura, the Manager of National Water and Sewerage Corporation Kisoro Branch Mr. Ariho Peter said that Mikingo Batwa were at one time supplied with water but missed on paying water bills. He added that the same Batwa vandalized the water meter and never replaced putting the corporation at loss.
Ariho Peter, the Kisoro branch NWSC branch Manager
He added that the plans to have the Batwa connected to safe water are ongoing Batwa they should be contributing money to pay for it as it’s not for free. He also advised municipal authorities to intervene and stop these Batwa from consuming sewage water as soon as possible.
The Kisoro Municipal, Ndyana Richard says it was an oversight to ignore the Batwa due to their inability to pay for water bills. He pledges to meet National Water and Sewerage Corporation authorities in Kisoro to see that the Batwa are reconnected to safe water.
‘Every village in Kisoro Municipality is supposed to be connected to more than one public water stand but it was an oversight that we ignored Mikingo because the Batwa do not have even 10 shillings to pay for it’ Ndyana said.
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